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Spain, New World Colonies under Philip II 1551-1555. Copper 4-Maravedis. Countermarked IIII and dated counter-mark on reverse.Castvlo

Spain, New World Colonies under Philip II 1551-1555. Copper 8-Maravedis. Countermarked and obliterated monogram and castle on reverse.Castvlo

CELTIBERIAN
AE 19.5 mm, 4.01 g
1st Century BC
O:Head right
R: Bull right, crescent above
Spain, possibly Castulolaney

1st Century CE, IRON AGE BRITAIN, Tribes: Catuvellauni and Trinovantes, AE Unit, Struck c.10 - 40 at Verlamion under CunobelinusObverse: CVNO - BELIN. Bare head facing left.
Reverse: TASCIO. Metal worker, wielding hammer, seated facing right.
Diameter: 15mm | Weight: 2.24gms | Axis: 3h
Spink: 342 | ABC: 2969 | Van Arsdell 2097

CUNOBELINUS
Cunobelinus was a king in Iron Age Britain from about 9 CE until about 40 CE. He is mentioned by the Roman historians Suetonius and Dio Cassius, and many coins bearing his inscription have been found. Cunobelinus controlled a substantial portion of south-eastern Britain, including the territories of the Catuvellauni and the Trinovantes, and is called “Britannorum rex" (King of the Britons) by Suetonius. He appears to have been recognized by the Roman emperor Augustus as a client king, shown by the use of the Latin title Rex on some of his coins.
Numismatic evidence appears to indicate that Cunobelinus took power around AD 9 after the death of his father Tasciovanus, minting coins from both Camulodunum, capital of the Trinovantes and Verlamion (Roman Verulamium), capital of the Catuvellauni. Some of the Verulamium coins name him as the son of Tasciovanus, a previous king of the Catuvellauni. Cunobelinus' earliest issues are, however, from Camulodunum, indicating that he took power there first, and some have a palm or laurel wreath design, a motif borrowed from the Romans indicating a military victory. It is possible that he was emboldened to act against the Trinovantes, whose independence was protected by a treaty they made with Julius Caesar in 54 BC, because problems in Germania severely affected Augustus' ability to defend allies in Britain.
Cunobelinus, however, appears to have maintained quite good relations with the Roman Empire, he used classical motifs on his coins and his reign also saw an increase in trade with the continent. Archaeological evidence shows an increase in imported luxury goods, including wine and drinking vessels from Italy, olive oil and “garum” (fish sauce) from Spain, as well as glassware, jewellery, and tableware from the wider continent, all of which, from their distribution, appear to have entered Britain via the port of Camulodunum. Rome's lucrative trade with Britain was also reported by Strabo, according to him the island's exports included grain, gold, silver, iron, hides, slaves and hunting dogs. It seems likely that Cunobelinus was one of the British kings, mentioned by Strabo, who sent embassies to Augustus.
Cunobelinus died about 40, probably within a year of that date, as he was certainly dead by 43.
Traditionally it has been suggested that the “Lexden Tumulus” on the outskirts of Colchester was Cunobelinus' tomb, but without evidence confirming that, it is also possible that the tomb was built for the earlier Trinovantian king, Addedomarus. Interestingly there is a second tumulus, though this one is not so well known, 665m to the northwest of the Lexden burial mound, on a grassy area in the middle of a modern housing estate. This tumulus, known as ‘The Mount’, probably dates from around the same time as the well-known one at Fitzwalter Road, Lexden.

CLICK ON MAP BELOW TO ENLARGE IT

1 comments*Alex

2 Augustus IrippoAUGUSTUS
Æ Semis of Irippo, Spain, 27 BC - 14 AD

IRIPPO, Bare head of Augustus right within wreath / Female figure seated left, holding pine-cone and cornucopia; all within wreath.

RPC 55; SNG Cop. 152-4. VF, green patina
RI00101 commentsSosius

Scipio AfricanusSCIPIO AFRICANUS
Æ15, Spain, Carthago Nova, (2.4g) c. 209 B.C.

Male Roman style head left, probably Scipio Africanus before he was given title Africanus / Horse head right

SNG Cop. 298, Lindgren Eur. Mints 6. Toynbee p. 18-19. VF, green patina, encrust.

This coin may be the earliest depiction of a living Roman. Carthago Nova also produced rare likely portraits of Hannibal.
RR0029Sosius

Louis XIV and Marie-Thérèse, AE (Brass) Jeton struck c.1667Obverse: +LVD•XIIII•ET•MAR•THER•D•G•FRA•ET•NAV•REX•ET•REG. Busts of Louis XIV and Marie Therese facing one another. To the left, draped and laureate bust of Louis XVI facing right. To the right, draped bust of Marie Therese facing left, small crown on the back of her head.
Reverse: VINCIT•DVM•RESPICIT (The sun dissipates the clouds). Radiant disc of the sun with facial features parting billowing clouds below; in exergue, 1667.
Dimensions: 27mm | Weight: 6.1gms | Die Axis: 6
Ref. Feuardent: 13069

Struck at Lisse, Netherlands
Die engraver: Unknown

Marie-Thérèse, daughter of Philip IV of Spain, was born on the 10th of September 1638. She was also called Marie-Thérèse D'Autriche because the Spanish Kings of those days had a Hapsburg-Austrian origin and her name refers to that and not the home country were she was born and lived.
In 1660 Philip IV, and the entire Spanish court accompanied Marie-Thérèse to the Isle of Pheasants, in the Bidassoa, where she was met by Louis XIV and his court. She and Louis XIV were married in 1660, the marriage agreement being one aspect of the peace negotiations that took place between Spain and France during 1659 and 1660. On the day of her wedding, Marie-Thérèse wore a gown covered in the royal fleur-de-lys and it is said that her uncovered hair proved to be so thick that it was difficult to attach a crown to it. This might account for the odd positioning of the crown as it appears on her bust.
Jetons commemorating the marriage, bearing the busts of Louis XIV and Marie-Thérèse, were issued each year from 1660 through to 1673. Marie-Thérèse died on 30th July, 1683.*Alex

SPAIN, Oducia
PB Tessera (19mm, 3.95 g)
MF/OD within wreath (Municipium Flavium Oducensis)
Blank
Cf. Casariego, Cores, & Pliego 14b

The municipia Flavia were a series of small towns founded as part of Vespasian's reconstruction of Spain. These settlements are notable in that the civic laws are preserved in stone for many of the settlements. Ardatirion

SPAIN, Uncertain Municipium Flavium
PB Tessera (18mm, 5.82 g, 7h)
Prow of galley left
MF/ QF
Casariego, Cores, & Pliego 13aArdatirion

SPAIN, Uncertain Municipium Flavium
PB Tessera (15mm, 4.02 g)
M/ OF
Blank
Cf. Casariego, Cores, & Pliego 13d (for obverse)Ardatirion

(02) AUGUSTUS27 BC - 14 AD
AE 32mm 20.64g
O: BARE HEAD L
R: AQUILA BETWEEN LEGIONARY STANDARDS
SPAIN, COLONIA PATRICIA (CORDUBA)
laney

(02) AUGUSTUS27 BC - 14 AD
AE 25mm 10.47g
O: BARE HEAD L
R: IVLIA TRAD WITHIN WREATH
SPAIN, JULIA TRADUCTAlaney

(02) AUGUSTUS27 BC - 14 AD
AE 24 mm 7.88 g
O: PERM CAES AV[G]
BARE HEAD LEFT
R: IVLIA TRAD WITHIN WREATH
SPAIN, JULIA TRADUCTAlaney

002 Augustus (63 B.C.-14 A.D.), RIC I 040a, Spain, AR-Denarius, OB CIVIS SERVATOS, oak-wreath, Rare!002 Augustus (63 B.C.-14 A.D.), RIC I 040a, Spain, AR-Denarius, OB CIVIS SERVATOS, oak-wreath, Rare!
avers:-AVGVSTVS-CAESAR, Rare head right.
revers:-OB-CIVIS SERVATOS, oak-wreath with ties erect in centre.
exe:-/-//--, diameter: 18,5-20,5mm, weight: 3,60g, axis: 6h,
mint: Spain, date: 19-18 B.C., ref: RIC I 40a, C-210,
Q-0011 commentsquadrans

002 Augustus (63 B.C.-14 A.D.), RIC I 119, Spain, AR-Denarius, Temple with four columns, S•P-Q•R across the field,002 Augustus (63 B.C.-14 A.D.), RIC I 119, Spain, AR-Denarius, Temple with four columns, S•P-Q•R across the field,
avers:- CAESARI-AVGVSTO, Laureate head right.
revers:- No legend, Temple with four columns, currus with legionary eagle within, S•P-Q•R across the field.
exe:S•P/Q•R//--, diameter: 18-19mm, weight: 3,35g, axis: 7h,
mint: Spain, date: 18 B.C., ref: RIC I 119, C-279,
Q-0012 commentsquadrans

002p Augustus (63 B.C.-14 A.D.), Spain, Caesaraugusta, Tarraconensis, RPC I 0322, AE-26, Magistrate: Mn. Kaninius Iter and L. Titius, duoviri, CAESAR AVG MN KANINIO ITER L TITIO / II VIR, Priest plowing right with the yoke of two oxen, #1002p Augustus (63 B.C.-14 A.D.), Spain, Caesaraugusta, Tarraconensis, RPC I 0322, AE-26, Magistrate: Mn. Kaninius Iter and L. Titius, duoviri, CAESAR AVG MN KANINIO ITER L TITIO / II VIR, Priest plowing right with the yoke of two oxen, #1
avers: AVGVSTVS DIVI F, Laureate head right; simpulum to left, lituus to right.
reverse: CAESAR AVG MN KANINIO ITER L TITIO / II VIR, Priest plowing right with yoke of two oxen.
exergue: -/-//--, diameter: 26,0-27,0 mm, weight: 10,85g, axis:6h,
mint: City: Caesaraugusta, Region: Hispania, Province: Tarraconensis,
Magistrate: L Titius (duovir); Mn Kaninius Iter (duovir),
date: B.C.,
ref: RPC I 0322, SNG Cop 544, Vives 148–1, 2, Hill 14–5, Beltrán 9, NAH 979,
Q-0011 commentsquadrans

002p Augustus (63 B.C.-14 A.D.), Spain, Tarraconensis, Bilbilis, RPC 0392, AE-27, MVN AVGVSTA BILBILIS M SEMP TIBERI I LICI VARO around II VIR in wreath, #1002p Augustus (63 B.C.-14 A.D.), Spain, Tarraconensis, Bilbilis, RPC 0392, AE-27, MVN AVGVSTA BILBILIS M SEMP TIBERI I LICI VARO around II VIR in wreath, #1
Magistrate: L Lici Varus (duovir); M Semp Tiberi (duovir).
avers: AVGVSTVS DIVI F PATER PATRIAE, Laureate head right.
reverse: MVN AVGVSTA BILBILIS M SEMP TIBERI L LICI VARO (MVN, and AV, MP, and VA are legate) around II VIR in a wreath.
exergue: -/-//--, diameter: 27,0-27,5 mm, weight: 12,19g, axis:6h,
mint: City: Bilbilis Region: Hispania Province: Tarraconensis date: 2 B.C.,
ref: RPC I (online) 0392, Vives 139–1, GMI 545, NAH 964,
Q-0011 commentsquadrans

004a. CaesoniaSpain, Carthago Nova. Gaius Caligula, with Caesonia. A.D. 37-41. Æ 26.6 mm (11.5 g). Cn. Atellius Flaccus and Cn. Pompeius Flaccus, duovirs. Laureate head of Caligula right / Draped bust of Caesonia, as Salus, right. RPC 186.

Checkecoli

005a6. ClaudiusClaudius
Imitative Sestertius
32mm, 12.5 g.
Claudius AE Sestertius. TI CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG P M TR P IMP P P, laureate head right / SPES AVGVSTA, S C in exergue, Spes walking left, holding flower and lifting hem of skirt.
Similar to RIC 115.

NOTE: Based on discussions on the Forum discussion board, these imitative sestertii were minted primarily in Britain, Spain, and Gaul to serve the need for local coinages. Some were countermarked with DV to indicate that they had the value of a dupondius. They reportedly are particularly common finds at military posts and in civilian settlements near those posts.lawrence c

1399 - 1413, Henry IV, AR Hardi d'Argent, Struck 1399 -1453 at Bordeaux, Aquitaine, FranceObverse: ERIC R ANGLIE ✤ Crowned and robed half-length figure of Henry facing under Gothic canopy, holding sword in right hand, left hand raised with finger pointing in benedictory position. Mullet over crown, rosette either side of crown. Rosette (marked in text by ✤) in legend.
Reverse: FRA-CIE ✤ DNS AQI ✤ Long cross collarino, pattée at the ends, extending through legend. Fleur de lis with roundel underneath in second and third quarters; lion passant, guardant in first and fourth quarters, roundel over lion in fourth quarter. Rosettes (marked in text by ✤) in legend.
Diameter: 18mm | Weight: 1.13gms | Axis 10h
SPINK: 8147 | Elias: 233h
Ex. Bazas Hoard | Ex. Jean Elsen (Belgium) | Scarce

The last series of these Anglo-Gallic coins was likely struck under more than one Henry and they have not currently been differentiated by ruler because the legends and types are generic. However, over time, Anglo-Gallic issues suffered from regular debasement and a deterioration in workmanship, the size, weight and quality of the strike of this coin would therefore all seem to point to it being an early example.

Henry IV
In 1399, Henry, Duke of Lancaster, overthrew his cousin, Richard II and took the throne as Henry IV, ruling until his death in 1413. Henry's first major problem as monarch was what to do with the deposed Richard. In January 1400, soon after an early assassination plot against Henry was foiled, Richard died in prison, allegedly of starvation. Though Henry was suspected of having had Richard murdered, it was also claimed that he took his own life.
Henry, also known as Henry Bolingbroke, was a grandson of Edward III and when he took the throne he asserted his grandfather's claim to the Kingdom of France. He founded the Lancaster branch of the House of Plantagenet and he was the first King of England since the Norman Conquest whose mother tongue was English rather than French.
Early in his reign, Henry hosted the visit of Manuel II Palaiologos, the only Byzantine emperor ever to visit England, and he gave monetary support to Manuel II to aid him against the Ottoman Empire.
Despite the example set by most of his recent predecessors, after their deaths, Henry and his second wife, Joan of Navarre, Queen of England, were buried not at Westminster Abbey but at Canterbury Cathedral, on the north side of Trinity Chapel and directly adjacent to the shrine of St Thomas Becket.

The Bazas Hoard
This hoard was discovered in May 2004 by a builder at Bazas in south West France when he was renovating a house. Bazas was a regional centre in the middle ages. The hoard consisted of a mixture of medieval coins which had been minted in Spain, Portugal, Italy, England, the Netherlands and various French duchies. Of the 1010 coins found, 157 were gold, 300 were silver and the remainder were billon. The oldest coin was a King Jean II franc from 1360 and the rarest coin was a gold castellano from the time of Henry IV of Castile, of which only one other example is known to exist.

Henry is depicted here standing in a similar pose to that shown on this coin.3 comments*Alex

1554, Mary I Tudor & Philip II of Spain, AR Sixpence, Struck in 1554 at London, EnglandObverse: PHILIP • ET • MARIA • D • G • R • ANG • FRA • NEAP • PR • HISP • Bare headed and cuirassed bust of Philip II of Spain facing right, face to face with bust of Mary Tudor, wearing high necked dress and coif, facing left; above, large crown dividing date 15 - 54.
Reverse: • POSVIMVS • DEVM • ADIVTOREM • NOSTRVM • Oval garnished shield bearing the arms of Spain and England; large crown above dividing V - I, representative of the six pence value.
Heavily creased flan. Rare.
Diameter: 26mm | Weight: 2.7gms | Die Axis: 12h
SPINK: 2505

Mary married Philip II of Spain on the 25th of July, 1554 and thereafter his name appears along with Mary's in the inscriptions on the coinage. But the full Royal titles were only used for the remaining five months of 1554 after their marriage and coins dated from 1555 onward bear only the English titles.

1 comments*Alex

1641 - Mark Antony and Lucius Antonius, DenariusDenarius minted in Ephesus in 41 BC
M ANT IMP AVG III VIR RPCM NERVA PROQ P, Bare head of Mark Antony right
L ANTONIUS COS, Bare head of Lucius Antonius right
3.58 gr
Ref : HCRI # 246, RCV #1509, Cohen #2
Following description taken from NAC auction 40, #617, about an other example of the same coin :
"This denarius, depicting the bare heads of Marc Antony and his youngest brother Lucius Antony, is a rare dual-portrait issue of the Imperatorial period. The family resemblance is uncanny, and one wonders if they truly looked this much alike, or if it is another case of portrait fusion, much like we observe with the dual-portrait billon tetradrachms of Antioch on which the face of the Egyptian queen Cleopatra VII takes on the square dimensions of Marc Antony. When Antony fled Rome to separate himself from Octavian and to take up his governorship in Gaul, Lucius went with him, and suffered equally from the siege of Mutina. This coin, however, was struck in a later period, when Lucius had for a second time taken up arms against Octavian in the west. Marc Antony was already in the east, and that is the region from which this coinage emanates. Since Lucius lost the ‘Perusine War’ he waged against Octavian, and was subsequently appointed to an office in Spain, where he died, it is likely that he never even saw one of his portrait coins."3 commentsPotator II

1737 2 RealesSpain, Philippus V.
1737 jf Silver 2 Reales. VF-XF spot on obv.

1737
HISPANIARUM REXrexesq

1737 2 RealesSpain, Philippus V.
1737 jf Silver 2 Reales. VF-XF spot on obv.

PHILIPPUS V D G
R II
M JF
(seperated by coat of arms)
rexesq

1737 2 RealesSpain, Philippus V.
1737 jf Silver 2 Reales. VF-XF spot on obv.

1737
HISPANIARUM REX

PHILIPPUS V D G
R II
M JF
(seperated by coat of arms)
rexesq

1737 2 Reales.---
Spain, Philippus V.
1737 jf Silver 2 Reales. VF-XF.

1737
HISPANIARUM REX
-
---
-
**Photo discolored, also coin was inside of plastic coin flip when photo was taken.**
---
-rexesq

1762 Mo 2 Reales1762 Mo 2 Reales, Charles III.
Obverse scratch.
obv:
VTRA QUE VNUM
+Mo+1762+M+
rev:
R 2
+CAR.III.D.G.HISP. ET IND.R +

Weight: 6.5 Grams
Size: 27 mmrexesq

1762 Mo 2 Reales 1762 Mo 2 Reales, Charles III.
obv:
VTRA QUE VNUM
+Mo+1762+M+
rev:
R 2
+CAR.III.D.G.HISP. ET IND.R +

rexesq

1795- MoFM Mexico Spanish Colonial 8 Reales of Charles IIII - [KM-109 -- Charles IIII]Chopmarked, 0.7797 ounce silver 8 Reales (also known as the pillar dollar), 26.65g, 39.62mm, 0 degree, Mexico City, Mexico Mint [Mo -- small 'o' set over a large 'M'], 179[5]

Obv. - • CAROLUS IIII • DEI • GR[ATIA] •, laureate bust of Charles IIII right

Rev. - • HISPAN • ET IND • REX • Mo • 8R • F • M •, coat of arms of Spain

This coin was sold as a 1794 chopmarked 8 Reale. Upon inspection in hand under high magnification and different lighting conditions, as well as inspection of large, quality pictures on the computer allowing for color/contrast/levels manipulation, and I have determined this coin to actually be from 1795. The '5', although extremely worn is visible under the correct conditions and comparisons of the worn number morphology to other 179x coins lends credence to this finding.

The reverse is just as interesting and challenging. Although the mintmark is almost completely worn off, the assayer of FM ensures that the coin is of Mexico City, Mexico mintmark.

The coat of arms of Spain, a crown crown flanked by columns and a middle shield includes the national motto PLVS VLTRA spread across the two columns. PLVS VLTRA (PLUS ULTRA) translates to "further beyond." It is adopted from the personal motto of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (and King of Spain as Charles I) and is a Latin translation from Plus Oultre, his original motto in Old French.

Although this coin is quite worn in certain areas, it has a lovely tone and great character. The numerous different chopmarks just add to the appeal. This coins was bought as a conversation piece as I have always found them interesting, albeit with knowing next to nothing concerning them. However, after doing some research, I have come to appreciate it much more and may follow suite with further additions. In any case, I plan on further reading into the subject area.
___________

Purchased from Regal Coin Exchange in Savannah, GA1 commentsrenegade3220

1800 - Mo - F M - Spanish Empire, Silver half-real - Mexico City MintSpanish Empire, Coins of the Spanish Main.
Silver Half Reale ( 1/2 Real ) coin of the Spanish Main, struck at the Mexico City Mint in 1800.
King Charles IIII of Spain.

obv: . CAROLUS . IIII . DEI. GRATIA. 1800 - Laureate bust of King Charles IIII facing right.

rev: .HISPAN.ET IND.R.Mo.F.M. - Spanish coat of arms surmounted by crown. Pillar on each side with banners wrapped around each one that together read: ' PLUS ' ' ULTRA ' .

Weight: 1.574 Grams
Size: 18-19 mm2 commentsrexesq

1842 Spain 8 Maravedis - and - 1870 Spain 5 CentimosLEFT: Spain, Queen Isabella II, 1842 8 Maravedis.

RIGHT: Spain, One Year Issue, 1870 Cinco Centimos.
~~~~~~~~~~
*Enlarge for full details*rexesq

1866 Spain Silver 40C de EscudoSpain 1866 - Silver 40Cent
obv:
ISABEL 2A. POR LA G. DE DIOS Y LA CONST.
.1866.

rev:
REINA DE LAS ESPANAS
* 40 CENTs DE ESCo *rexesq

1866 Spain Silver 40C de EscudoSpain 1866 Silver 40Cent
Queen Isabel II
obv:
ISABEL 2A. POR LA G. DE DIOS Y LA CONST.
.1866.

rev:
REINA DE LAS ESPANAS
* 40 CENTs. DE ESCo. *rexesq

1870 Spain Bronze Cinco Centimos coin - One Year Type-
---
Spain, 1870 - Cinco Centimos.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
*Enlarge for full detail.*
~~~~~~
~~~~
~~
~rexesq

1870 Spain Bronze Cinco Centimos coin - One Year Type.-
---
Spain, 1870 - Cinco Centimos.
---
-rexesq

1870 Spain Silver 2 Pesetas~
~~~
Spain, 1870 Silver Dos Pesetas.
"Hispania Reclining"
~~~
Weight: 10 Grams
.8350 Fine Silver
.2685 oz Actual Silver Weight.
~~~
~ rexesq

1870 Spain Silver 2 Pesetas~
~~~
Spain, 1870 Silver Dos Pesetas.
"Hispania Reclining"
~~~
Weight: 10 Grams
.8350 Fine Silver
.2685 oz Actual Silver Weight.
~~~
~rexesq

1877 Spain Cinco CentimosSpain 1877 Cinco Centimos, Bronze.
obv:
ALFONSO XII POR LA GRACIA DE DIOS
* 1877 *
rev:
REY CONSTL. DE ESPANA
CINCO CENTIMOSrexesq

1ae2 FulviaFirst wife of Marc Antony

ca 83-40 BC

AR Quinarius
Bust of Victory right with the likeness of Fulvia, III VIR R P C
Lion right between A and XLI; ANTONI above, IMP in ex

RSC 3, Syd 1163, Cr489/6

Fulvia was the first Roman non-mythological woman to appear on Roman coins. She gained access to power through her marriage to three of the most promising men of her generation, Publius Clodius Pulcher, Gaius Scribonius Curio, and Marcus Antonius. All three husbands were politically active populares, tribunes, and supporters of Julius Caesar. Fulvia married Mark Antony in 47 or 46 BC, a few years after Curio's death, although Cicero suggested that Fulvia and Antony had had a relationship since 58 BC. According to him, while Fulvia and Antony were married, Antony once left a military post to sneak back into Rome during the night and personally deliver a love letter to Fulvia describing his love for her and how he had stopped seeing the famous actress Cytheris. Cicero also suggested that Antony married Fulvia for her money. At the time of their marriage, Antony was an established politician. He had already been tribune in 49 BC, commanded armies under Caesar and was Master of the Horse in 47 BC. As a couple, they were a formidable political force in Rome, and had two sons together, Marcus Antonius Antyllus and Iullus Antonius.

Suetonius wrote, "[Antony] took a wife, Fulvia, the widow of Clodius the demagogue, a woman not born for spinning or housewifery, nor one that could be content with ruling a private husband, but prepared to govern a first magistrate, or give orders to a commander-in-chief. So that Cleopatra had great obligations to her for having taught Antony to be so good a servant, he coming to her hands tame and broken into entire obedience to the commands of a mistress. He used to play all sorts of sportive, boyish tricks, to keep Fulvia in good-humour. As, for example, when Caesar, after his victory in Spain, was on his return, Antony, among the rest, went out to meet him; and, a rumour being spread that Caesar was killed and the enemy marching into Italy, he returned to Rome, and, disguising himself, came to her by night muffled up as a servant that brought letters from Antony. She, with great impatience, before received the letter, asks if Antony were well, and instead of an answer he gives her the letter; and, as she was opening it, took her about the neck and kissed her."

After Julius Caesar was assassinated, Antony became the most powerful man in Rome. Fulvia was heavily involved in the political aftermath. After Caesar's death, the senate realized his popularity and declared that they would pass all of Caesar's planned laws. Antony had attained possession of Caesar's papers, and with the ability to produce papers in support of any law, Fulvia and Antony made a fortune and gained immense power. She allegedly accompanied Antony to his military camp at Brundisium in 44 BC. Appian wrote that in December 44 and again in 41 BC, while Antony was abroad and Cicero campaigned for Antony to be declared an enemy of the state, Fulvia attempted to block such declarations by soliciting support on Antony's behalf.

Antony formed the second triumvirate with Octavian (the future emperor Augustus) and Marcus Aemilius Lepidus on 43 BC and began to conduct proscriptions. To solidify the political alliance, Fulvia's daughter Clodia was married to the young Octavian. Appian and Cassius Dio describe Fulvia as being involved in the violent proscriptions, which were used to destroy enemies and gain badly needed funds to secure control of Rome. Antony pursued his political enemies, chief among them being Cicero, who had openly criticized him for abusing his powers as consul after Caesar's assassination. Though many ancient sources wrote that Fulvia was happy to take revenge against Cicero for Antony's and Clodius' sake, Cassius Dio is the only ancient source that describes the joy with which she pierced the tongue of the dead Cicero with her golden hairpins, as a final revenge against Cicero's power of speech.

In 42 BC, Antony and Octavian left Rome to pursue Julius Caesar's assassins, Marcus Junius Brutus and Gaius Cassius Longinus. Fulvia was left behind as the most powerful woman in Rome. According to Cassius Dio, Fulvia controlled the politics of Rome. Dio wrote that "the following year Publius Servilius and Lucius Antonius nominally became consuls, but in reality it was Antonius and Fulvia. She, the mother-in‑law of Octavian and wife of Antony, had no respect for Lepidus because of his slothfulness, and managed affairs herself, so that neither the senate nor the people transacted any business contrary to her pleasure."

Shortly afterwards, the triumvirs then distributed the provinces among them. Lepidus took the west and Antony went to Egypt, where he met Cleopatra VII. When Octavian returned to Rome in 41 BC to disperse land to Caesar's veterans, he divorced Fulvia's daughter and accused Fulvia of aiming at supreme power. Fulvia allied with her brother-in-law Lucius Antonius and publicly endorsed Mark Antony in opposition to Octavian.

In 41 BC, tensions between Octavian and Fulvia escalated to war in Italy. Together with Lucius Antonius, she raised eight legions in Italy to fight for Antony's rights against Octavian, an event known as the Perusine War. Fulvia fled to Greece with her children. Appian writes that she met Antony in Athens, and he was upset with her involvement in the war. Antony then sailed back to Rome to deal with Octavian, and Fulvia died of an unknown illness in exile in Sicyon, near Corinth, Achaea.Blindado

1bc Trajan98-117

Sestertius
Laureate head, right, IMP CAES NERVAE TRAIANO AVG GER DAC P M TR P COS V PP
Roma and kneeling Dacian, SPQR OPTIMO PRINCIPI SC

RIC 485

Eutropius enthused: To [Nerva] succeeded ULPIUS CRINITUS TRAJANUS, born at Italica in Spain, of a family rather ancient than eminent for his father was the first consul in it. He was chosen emperor at Agrippina, a city of Gaul. He exercised the government in such a manner, that he is deservedly preferred to all the other emperors. He was a man of extraordinary skill in managing affairs of state, and of remarkable courage. The limits of the Roman empire, which, since the reign of Augustus, had been rather defended than honourably enlarged, he extended far and wide. He rebuilt some cities in Germany; he subdued Dacia by the overthrow of Decebalus, and formed a province beyond the Danube, in that territory which the Thaiphali, Victoali, and Theruingi now occupy. This province was a thousand miles in circumference.

He recovered Armenia, which the Parthians had seized, putting to death Parthamasires who held the government of it. He gave a king to the Albani. He received into alliance the king of the Iberians, Sarmatians, Bosporani, Arabians, Osdroeni, and Colchians. He obtained the mastery over the Cordueni and Marcomedi, as well as over Anthemusia, an extensive region of Persia. He conquered and kept possession of Seleucia, Ctesiphon, Babylon, and the country of the Messenii. He advanced as far as the boundaries of India, and the Red Sea, where he formed three provinces, Armenia, Assyria, and Mesopotamia, including the tribes which border on Madena. He afterwards, too, reduced Arabia into the form of a province. He also fitted out a fleet for the Red Sea, that he might use it to lay waste the coasts of India.

Yet he went beyond his glory in war, in ability and judgment as a ruler, conducting himself as an equal towards all, going often to his friends as a visitor, either when they were ill, or when they were celebrating feast days, and entertaining them in his turn at banquets where there was no distinction of rank, and sitting frequently with them in their chariots; doing nothing unjust towards any of the senators, nor being guilty of any dishonesty to fill his treasury; exercising liberality to all, enriching with offices of trust, publicly and privately, every body whom he had known even with the least familiarity; building towns throughout the world, granting many immunities to states, and doing every thing with gentleness and kindness; so that during his whole reign, there was but one senator condemned, and he was sentenced by the senate without Trajan's knowledge. Hence, being regarded throughout the world as next to a god, he deservedly obtained the highest veneration both living and dead. . . .

After having gained the greatest glory both in the field and at home, he was cut off, as he was returning from Persia, by a diarrhoea, at Seleucia in Isauria. He died in the sixty-third year, ninth month, and fourth day of his age, and in the nineteenth year, sixth month, and fifteenth day of his reign. He was enrolled among the gods, and was the only one of all the emperors that was buried within the city. His bones, contained in a golden urn, lie in the forum which he himself built, under a pillar whose height is a hundred and forty-four feet. So much respect has been paid to his memory, that, even to our own times, they shout in acclamations to the emperors, "More fortunate than Augustus, better than Trajan!" Blindado

1cy Gallienus253-268

Bronze antoninianus

Radiate, draped bust, right, GALLINVS AVG
Mars standing left, holding globe in right hand and spear in left hand, P in right field, VIRTVS AVG

RIC 317

Gallienus oversaw a period of disintegration of the empire and lost control over the East, Gaul, Spain, and Britain.

Zosimus observed: [When Valerian left for the East] As the Germans were the most troublesome enemies, and harrassed the Gauls in the vicinity of the Rhine, Gallienus marched against them in person, leaving his officers to repel with the forces under their command any others that should enter Italy, Illyricum, and Greece. With these designs, he possessed himself of and defended the passages of the Rhine, at one time preventing their crossing, and at another engaging them as soon as they had crossed it. But having only a small force to resist an immense number, he was at a loss how to act, and thought to secure himself by a league with one of the German princes. He thus not only prevented the other Barbarians from so frequently passing the Rhine, but obstructed the access of auxiliaries.

Eutropius recorded: Gallienus, who was made emperor when quite a young man, exercised his power at first happily, afterwards fairly, and at last mischievously. In his youth he performed many gallant acts in Gaul and Illyricum, killing Ingenuus, who had assumed the purple, at Mursa, and Regalianus. He was then for a long time quiet and gentle; afterwards, abandoning himself to all manner of licentiousness, he relaxed the reins of government with disgraceful inactivity and carelesness. The Alemanni, having laid waste Gaul, penetrated into Italy. Dacia, which had been added to the empire beyond the Danube, was lost. Greece, Macedonia, Pontus, Asia, were devastated by the Goths. Pannonia was depopulated by the Sarmatians and Quadi. The Germans made their way as far as Spain, and took the noble city of Tarraco. The Parthians, after taking possession of Mesopotamia, began to bring Syria under their power.

Zosimus resumes: Gallienus in the mean time still continued beyond the Alps, intent on the German war, while the Senate, seeing Rome in such imminent danger, armed all the soldiers that were in the city, and the strongest of the common people, and formed an army, which exceeded the Barbarians in number. This so alarmed the Barbarians, that they left Rome, but ravaged all the rest of Italy. At this period, when Illyricum groaned under the oppression of the Barbarians, and the whole Roman empire was in such a helpless state as to be on the very verge of ruin, a plague happened to break out in several of the towns, more dreadful than any that had preceded it. The miseries inflicted on them by the Barbarians were thus alleviated, even the sick esteeming themselves fortunate. The cities that had been taken by the Scythians were thus deserted.

Gallienus, being disturbed by these occurrences, was returning to Rome to relieve Italy from the war which the Scythians were thus carrying on. It was at this time, that Cecrops, a Moor, Aureolus and Antoninus, with many others, conspired against him, of whom the greater part were punished and submitted. Aureolus alone retained his animosity against the emperor.

The Scythians, who had dreadfully afflicted the whole of Greece, had now taken Athens, when Gallienus advanced against those who were already in possession of Thrace, and ordered Odonathus of Palmyra, a person whose ancestors had always been highly respected by the emperors, to assist the eastern nations which were then in a very distressed condition. . . .

While affairs were thus situated in the east, intelligence was brought to Gallienus, who was then occupied in the Scythian war, that Aurelianus, or Aureolus, who was commander of the cavalry posted in the neighbourhood of Milan to watch the motions of Posthumus, had formed some new design, and was ambitious to be emperor. Being alarmed at this he went immediately to Italy, leaving the command against the Scythians with Marcianus, a person of great experience in military affairs. . . . Gallienus, in his journey towards Italy, had a plot formed against him by Heraclianus, prefect of the court, who communicated his design to Claudius, in whom the chief management of affairs was vested. The design was to murder Gallienus. Having found a man very ready for such an undertaking, who commanded a troop of Dalmatians, he entrusted the action to him. To effect it, the party stood by Gallienus at supper and informed him that some of the spies had brought intelligence, that Aureolus and his army were close at hand. By this they considerably alarmed him. Calling immediately for his horse and arms, he mounted, ordering his men to follow him in their armour, and rode away without any attendance. Thus the captain finding him alone killed him.Blindado

1de Postumus259-268

Antoninianus

Radiate, draped & cuirassed bust, right, IMP C POTVMVS PF AVG
Virtus standing right, holding spear & shield, VIRTVS AVG

RIC 93

Postumus rebelled against Gallienus and ruled Gaul, Spain, and Britain. Eutropius wrote: When affairs were in this desperate condition, and the Roman empire almost ruined, POSTUMUS, a man of very obscure birth, assumed the purple in Gaul, and held the government with such ability for ten years, that he recruited the provinces, which had been almost ruined, by his great energy and judgment; but he was killed in a mutiny of the army, because he would not deliver up Moguntiacum, which had rebelled against him, to be plundered by the soldiers, at the time when Lucius Aelianus was endeavouring to effect a change of government.

According to the Historia Augusta: This man, most valiant in war and most steadfast in peace, was so highly respected for his whole manner of life that he was even entrusted by Gallienus with the care of his son Saloninus (whom he had placed in command of Gaul), as the guardian of his life and conduct and his instructor in the duties of a ruler.- Nevertheless, as some writers assert though it does not accord with his character he afterwards broke faith and after slaying Saloninus seized the imperial power. As others, however, have related with greater truth, the Gauls themselves, hating Gallienus most bitterly and being unwilling to endure a boy as their emperor, hailed as their ruler the man who was holding the rule in trust for another, and despatching soldiers they slew the boy. When he was slain, Postumus was gladly accepted by the entire army and by all the Gauls, and for seven years he performed such exploits that he completely restored the provinces of Gaul. . . . Great, indeed, was the love felt for Postumus in the hearts of all the people of Gaul because he had thrust back all the German tribes and had restored the Roman Empire to its former security. But when he began to conduct himself with the greatest sternness, the Gauls, following their custom of always desiring a change of government, at the instigation of Lollianus put him to death.

Zonaras adds: Galienus, when he had learned of [his son's death], proceeded against Postumus, and, when he had engaged him, was initially beaten and then prevailed, with the result that Postumus fled. Then Auriolus was sent to chase him down. Though able to capture him, he was unwilling to pursue him for long, but, coming back, he said that he was unable to capture him. Thus Postumus, having escaped, next organized an army. Galienus again marched upon him and, after he had penned him in a certain city of Gaul, besieged the usurper. In the siege, the sovereign was struck in the back by an arrow and, having become ill as a result, broke off the siege.Blindado

1dr Carinus283-285

AE antoninianus

Radiate draped & cuirassed bust, right, IMP C M AVR CARINVS AVG
Aequitas stg. Left, AEQVITAS AVGG

RIC 238

According to the Historia Augusta: He was the most polluted of men, an adulterer and a constant corrupter of youth. . . . He was left by his father as Caesar in Gaul and Italy and in Illyricum, Spain, Britain, and Africa, all of which had been voted to him, and he exercised there a Caesar's powers, but with the permission to perform all the duties of an Augustus. Then he defiled himself by unwonted vices and inordinate depravity. . . . He appeared in public as consul contrary to his father's wish. He wrote arrogant letters to the senate, and he even promised the senate's property to the mob of the city of Rome, as though it, forsooth, were the Roman people. By marrying and divorcing he took nine wives in all, and he put away some even while they were pregnant. He filled the Palace with actors and harlots, pantomimists, singers and pimps. He had such an aversion for the signing of state-papers that he appointed for signing them a certain filthy fellow, with whom he used always to jest at midday, and then he reviled him because he could imitate his writing so well. . . .

When he learned that his father had been killed by lightning and his brother slain by his own father-in-law, and that Diocletian had been hailed as Augustus, Carinus committed acts of still greater vice and crime, as though now set free and released by the death of his kindred from all the restraints of filial duty. He did not, however, lack strength of purpose for claiming the imperial power. For he fought many battles against Diocletian, but finally, being defeated in a fight near Margus, he perished.Blindado

1ep Valentinian364-375

AE3

Pearl diademed, draped, cuirassed bust right , D N VALENTINIANVS P F AVG
Emperor in military dress, advancing right, head left, holding labarum, dragging captive behind him. No fieldmarks. Mintmark: dot GSISC, GLORIA ROMANORVM

RIC 5a

According to Zosimus: Several discussions were held among the soldiers and their officers, and various persons were nominated. At length Sallustius, the prefect of the court, was unanimously elected. He excused himself on the pretext of his advanced age, which disabled him from being of service in the present critical circumstances. They then desired that his son might be emperor in lieu of himself. But his son he told them was too young, and from that as well as other causes unable to sustain the weight of an imperial diadem. They thus failed in their wish to appoint so distinguished a person, who was the most worthy of the age. They therefore elected Valentinian, a native of Cibalis in Pannonia. He was an excellent soldier, but extremely illiterate. They sent for him, he being then at some distance: and the state was not long without a ruler. Upon his arrival at the army, at Nicaea in Bithynia, he assumed the imperial authority, and proceeded forward. . . .

I have now to state, that while Valentinian was on his journey towards Constantinople, he was seized with a distemper, which increased his natural choleric temper to a degree of cruelty, and even to madness, so that he falsely suspected his sickness to proceed from some charm or poison which Julian's friends had prepared for him through malice. Accusations to that effect were drawn up against some distinguished persons, which were set aside by the discretion of Sallustius, who still was prefect of the court. After his distemper abated, he proceeded from Nicaea to Constantinople. The army and his friends in that city advised him to choose an associate in the empire, that if occasion should require, he might have some one to assist him, and prevent their again suffering as at the death of Julian. He complied with their advice, and after consideration, selected his brother Valens, whom he thought most likely to prove faithful to him. He declared him associate in the empire. . . . Affairs being thus disposed, Valentinian deemed it most prudent to place the east as far as Egypt, Bithynia, and Thrace, under the care of his brother, and to take charge of Illyricum himself. From thence he designed to proceed to Italy, and to retain in his own possession all the cities in that country, and the countries beyond the Alps, with Spain, Britain, and Africa. The empire being thus divided, Valentinian began to govern more rigorously, correcting the faults of the magistrates. He was very severe in the collection of the imposts, and particularly in observing that the soldiers were duly paid. . . .

Meantime the Barbarians beyond the Rhine, who while Julian lived held the Roman name in terror, and were contented to remain quiet in their own territories, as soon as they heard of his death, immediately marched out of their own country, and prepared for a war with the Romans. Valentinian. on bring informed of this, made a proper disposition of his forces, and placed suitable garrisons in all the towns along the Rhine. Valentinian was enabled to make these arrangements by his experience in military affairs. . . . [T] he emperor Valentinian, having favourably disposed the affairs of Germany, made provisions for the future security of the Celtic nations. . . . Valentinian was now attacked by a disease which nearly cost him his life. Upon his recovery the countries requested him to appoint a successor, lest at his decease the commonwealth should be in danger. To this the emperor consented, and declared his son Gratian emperor and his associate in the government, although he was then very young, and not yet capable of the management of affairs. . . .

Valentinian, thinking he had sufficiently secured himself from a German war, acted towards his subjects with great severity, exacting from them exorbitant tributes, such as they had never before paid; under pretence that the military expenditure compelled him to have recourse to the public. Having thus acquired universal hatred, he became still more severe; nor would he enquire into the conduct of the magistrates, but was envious of all whe had the reputation of leading a blameless life. . . . For this cause, the Africans, who could not endure the excessive avarice of the person who held the military command in Mauritania, gave the purple robe to Firmus, and proclaimed him emperor. This doubtless gave much uneasiness to Valentinian, who immediately commanded some legions from the stations in Pannonia and Moesia, to embark for Africa. On this the Sarmatians and the Quadi, who had long entertained a hatred for Celestius, the governor of those countries, availing themselves, of the opportunity afforded by the departure of the legions for Africa, invaded the Pannonians and Moesians. . . . .

Valentinian, roused by the intelligence of these events, marched from Celtica into Illyricum, for the purpose of opposing the Quadi and the Sarmatians, and consigned the command of his forces to Merobaudes, who was a person of the greatest military experience. The winter continuing unusually late, the Quadi sent ambassadors to him with insolent and unbecoming messages. These so exasperated the emperor, that through the violence of his rage, the blood flowed from his head into his mouth, and suffocated him. He thus died after having resided in Illyricum nearly nine months, and after a reign of twelve years.Blindado

1et Valentinian II373-392

AE3, Nicomedia

Pearl-diademed, draped & cuirassed bust rightt, D N VALENTINIANVS IVN P F AVG
Roma seated on cuirass, holding spear and Victory on globe, VRBS ROMA

The SMN mintmark indicates that the coin was minted in Nicomedia, but RIC does not list this reverse type for that mint.

Sim to RIC 51

Zosimus reports: Valentinian being dead, the tribunes Merobaudes and Equitius, reflecting on the distance at which Valens and Gratian resided, the former being in the east, and the latter left by his father in the western part of Gaul, were apprehensive lest the Barbarians beyond the Ister should make an effort while the country was without a ruler. They therefore sent for the younger son of Valentinian, who was born of his wife the widow of Magnentius, who was not far from thence with the child. Having clothed him in purple, they brought him into the court, though scarcely five years old. The empire was afterwards divided between Gratian and the younger Valentinian, at the discretion of their guardians, they not being of age to manage their own affairs. The Celtic nations, Spain, and Britain were given to Gratian; and Italy, Illyricum, and Africa to Valentinian. . . .

Affairs being thus situated in the east, in Thrace, and in Illyricum, Maximus, who deemed his appointments inferior to his merits, being only governor of the countries formerly under Gratian, projected how to depose the young Valentinian from the empire, if possible totally, but should he fail in the whole, to secure at least some part. . . . he immediately entered Italy without; resistance, and marched to Aquileia. . . . This so much surprised Valentinian, and rendered his situation so desperate, that his courtiers were alarmed lest he should be taken by Maximus and put to death. He, therefore, immediately embarked,and sailed to Thessalonica with his mother Justina, who, as I before mentioned, had been the wife of Magnentius, but after his decease was taken in marriage by the emperor Valentinian on account of her extraordinary beauty. She carried along with her her daughter Galla. After having passed many seas, and arriving at Thessalonica, they sent messengers to the emperor Theodosius, intreating him now at least to revenge the injuries committed against the family of Valentinian. He was astonished at hearing of this, and began to forget his extravagance, and to lay some restraint on his wild inclination for pleasure. . . . Theodosius then delivered to Valentinian as much of the empire as his father had possessed; in which he only acted as he was enjoined by his duty to those who so merited his kindness. . . .

intelligence was brought that the emperor Valentianian was no more, and that his death happened in this manner: Arbogastes, a Frank, who was appointed by the emperor Gratian lieutenant to Baudo, at the death of Baudo, confiding in his own ability, assumed the command without the emperor's permission. Being thought proper for the station by all the soldiers under him, both for his valour and experience in military affairs, and for his disregard of riches, he attained great influence. He thus became so elevated, that he would speak without reserve to the emperor, and would blame any measure which he thought improper. This gave such umbrage to Valentinian. . . .

Eugenius became the sincere friend of Arbogastes, who had no secret which he did not confide to him. Recollecting Eugenius, therefore, at this juncture, who by his extraordinary learning and the gravity of his conversation seemed well-adapted for the management of an empire, he communicated to him his designs. But finding him not pleased with the proposals, he attempted to prevail on him by all the arts he could use, and entreated him not to reject what fortune so favourably offered. Having at length persuaded him, he deemed it advisable in the first place to remove Valentinian, and thus to deliver the sole authority to Eugenius. With this view he proceeded to Vienna, a town in Gaul, where the emperor resided; and as he was amusing himself near the town in some sports with the soldiers, apprehending no danger, Arbogastes gave him a mortal wound. Blindado

1eu Theodosius379-395

AE4

Pearl diademed, draped & cuirassed bust right, D N THEODOSIVS P F AVG
VOT V MVLT X within wreath, ASISC in ex

RIC 29d

Zosimus recorded: [Valentinian] commanded some legions from the stations in Pannonia and Moesia, to embark for Africa [to crush a rebellion]. On this the Sarmatians and the Quadi. . . , availing themselves, of the opportunity afforded by the departure of the legions for Africa, invaded the Pannonians and Moesians. . . . The barbarians therefore revenged themselves by plundering all the country along the Ister, carrying off all that they found in the towns. The Pannonians were by these means exposed to the cruelty of the barbarians, while the soldiers were extremely negligent in the defence of their towns, and committed as much mischief as the Barbarians themselves in all places on this side of the river. But Moesia was free from harm, because Theodosius, who commanded the forces there, courageously resisted the Barbarians, and routed them when they attacked him. By that victory he not only acquired great renown, but subsequently attained the imperial dignity. . . .

When the affairs of the empire were reduced to this low condition, Victor, who commanded the Roman cavalry, escaping the danger with some of his troops, entered Macedon and Thessaly. From thence he proceeded into Moesia and Pannonia, and informed Gratian, who was then in that quarter, of what had occurred, and of the loss of the emperor [Valens] and his army. Gratian received the intelligence without uneasiness, and was little grieved at the death of his uncle, a disagreement having existed between them. Finding himself unable to manage affairs, Thrace being ravaged by the Barbarians, as were likewise Pannonia and Moesia, and the towns upon the Rhine being infested by the neighbouring Barbarians without controul, he chose for his associate in the empire, Theodosius, who was a native of a town called Cauca, in the part of Spain called Hispania Callaecia, and who possessed great knowledge and experience of military affairs. Having given him the government of Thrace and the eastern provinces, Gratian himself proceeded to the west of Gaul, in order, if possible, to compose affairs in that quarter. . . .

During the stay of the new emperor, Theodosius, at Thesslonica, a great concourse arrived there from all parts of persons soliciting him on business, both public and private; who having obtained of him whatever he could conveniently grant, returned, to their homes. As a great multitude of the Scythians beyond the Ister, the Gotthi, and the Taiphali, and other tribes that formerly dwelt among them, had crossed the river, and were driven to infest the Roman dominions, because the Huns, had expelled them from their own country, the emperor Theodosius prepared for war with all his forces. . . . The army having made this good use of the occasion afforded by fortune, the affairs of Thrace, which had been on the brink of ruin, were now, the Barbarians being crushed beyond all hope, re-established in peace. . . .

Meanwhile, the emperor Theodosius, residing in Thessalonica, was easy of access to all who wished to see him. Having commenced his reign in luxury and indolence, he threw the magistracy into disorder, and increased the number of his military officers. . . . As he squandered the public money without consideration, bestowing it on unworthy persons, he consequently impoverished himself. He therefore sold the government of provinces to any who would purchase them, without regard to the reputation or ablity of the persons, esteeming him the best qualified who brought him the most gold or silver. . . .

Maximus, who deemed his appointments inferior to his merits, being only governor of the countries formerly under Gratian, projected how to depose the young Valentinian from the empire. . . . This so much surprised Valentinian, and rendered his situation so desperate, that his courtiers were alarmed lest he should be taken by Maximus and put to death. He, therefore, immediately embarked,and sailed to Thessalonica with his mother Justina. . . . [A]rriving at Thessalonica, they sent messengers to the emperor Theodosius, intreating him now at least to revenge the injuries committed against the family of Valentinian. . . . The emperor, being delivered from this alarm, marched with great resolution with his whole army against Maximus. . . . Theodosius, having passed through Pannonia and the defiles of the Appennines, attacked unawares the forces of Maximus before they were prepared for him. A part of his army, having pursued them with the utmost speed, forced their way through the gates of Aquileia, the guards being too few to resist them. Maximus was torn from his imperial throne while in the act of distributing money to his soldiers, and being stripped of his imperial robes, was brought to Theodosius, who, having in reproach enumerated some of his crimes against the commonwealth, delivered him to the common executioner to receive due punishment. . . . The emperor Theodosius, having consigned Italy, Spain, Celtica, and Libya to his son Honorius, died of a disease on his journey towards Constantinople. Blindado

1fa Honorius393-423

AE3

RIC 403

Pearl diademed, draped, cuirassed bust right, DN HONORIVS PF AVG
Two emperors standing facing, heads turned to one another, each holding spear and resting hand on shield, GLORIA ROMANORVM. Mintmark SMKA.

Zosimus wrote: [Theodosius] proceeded with his army to the war [against Eugenius], leaving behind him his son Arcadius, who had some time previously been made emperor. . . . Having done this, he took with him his younger son Honorius, quickly passed through the intermediate countries, and having exceded his expectations in crossing the Alps, arrived where the enemy was stationed. . . . The emperor Theodosius after these successes proceeded to Rome, where he declared his son Honorius emperor, and appointing Stilico to the command of his forces there, left him as guardian to his son. . . . The emperor Theodosius, having consigned Italy, Spain, Celtica, and Libya to his son Honorius, died of a disease on his journey towards Constantinople. . . .

THE whole empire being vested in Arcadius and Honorius, they indeed appeared by their title to possess the sovereign authority, although the universal administration of affairs was under Rufinus in the east, and under Stilico in the west. By these all causes were determined, at their own pleasure; for whoever bribed plentifully, or by any other means of friendship or consanguinity could make the judge his advocate, was sure to succeed in the process. From hence it happened that most of those great estates, which cause the possessors to be generally esteemed fortunate, devolved to these two; since some endeavoured by gifts to avoid false accusations, and others relinquished all their possessions to obtain an office, or in any other manner to purchase the ruin of particular cities. While iniquity of every kind presided, therefore, in the respective cities, the money from all quarters flowed into the coffers of Rufinus and Stilico ; while on the reverse, poverty preyed on the habitations of those who had formerly been rich. Nor were the emperors acquainted with anything that was done, but thought all that Rufinus and Stilico commanded was done by virtue of some unwritten law. . . .

After the autumn was terminated, and winter had commenced, Bassus and Philippus being chosen consuls, the emperor Honorius, who had long before lost his wife Maria, desired to marry her sister Thermantia. But Stilico appeared not to approve of the match, although it was promoted by Serena, who wished it to take place from these motives. When Maria was about to be married to Honorius, her mother, deeming her too young for the marriage-state and being unwilling to defer the marriage, although she thought that to submit so young and tender a person to the embraces of a man was offering violence to nature, she had recourse to a woman who knew how to manage such affairs, and by her means contrived that Maria should live with the emperor and share his bed, but that he should not have the power to deprive her of virginity. In the meantime Maria died a virgin, and Serena, who, as may readily be supposed, was desirous to become the grandmother of a young emperor or empress, through fear of her influence being diminished, used all her endeavours to marry her other daughter to Honorius. This being accomplished, the young lady shortly afterwards died in the same manner as the former. . . . .

For Stilico was desirous of proceeding to the east to undertake the management of the affairs of Theodosius, the son of Arcadius, who was very young, and in want of a guardian. Honorius himself was also inclined to undertake the same journey, with a design to secure the dominions of that emperor. But Stilico, being displeased at that, and laying before the emperor a calculation of the immense sum of money it would require to defray the expence of such an expedition, deterred him from the enterprise. . . .

In the mean time, the emperor Honorius commanded his wife Thermantia to be taken from the imperial throne, and to be restored to her mother, who notwithstanding was without suspicion. . . . Alaric began his expedition against Rome, and ridiculed the preparations made by Honorius. . . . The emperor Honorius was now entering on the consulship, having enjoyed that honour eight times, and the emperor Theodosius in the east three times. At this juncture the rebel Constantine sent some eunches to Honorius, to intreat pardon from him for having accepted of the empire. When the emperor heard this petition, perceiving that it was not easy for him, since Alaric and his barbarians were so near, to prepare for other wars ; and consulting the safety of his relations who were in the hands of the rebel, whose names were Verenianus and Didymius; he not only granted his request, but likewise sent him an imperial robe. . . .

Note: No ancient source reports the sack of Rome by the Goths in 410, they having besieged the city three times, all while Honorius huddled in a besieged Ravenna. Honorius retained his nominal capacity until he died in 423.Blindado

311. PostumusPostumus was recognized as emperor in Gaul, Spain, Germany, and Britain. He set up the capital of his renegade empire at Cologne, complete with its own senate, consuls and praetorian guard. He represented himself as the restorer of Gaul on some of his coins, a title he earned after successfully defending Gaul against the Germans. The coins issued by Postumus were of better workmanship and higher precious metal content than coins issued by Gallienus.

In 263, Gallienus launched a campaign to defeat Postumus. After initial success against Postumus, Gallienus was seriously wounded and needed to return home. After his failed attempt at defeating Postumus, Gallienus was occupied with crises in the rest of his empire and never challenged Postumus again.

Aureolus, a general of Gallienus who was in command of Milan, openly changed sides and allied himself with Postumus. The city of Milan would have been critical to Postumus if he planned to march on Rome. For whatever reason, Postumus failed to support Aureolus, who was besieged by Gallienus.

Postumus, one of Gallienus usurpers, was himself challenged by a usurper in 268. Laelianus, one of Postumus' top military leaders, was declared emperor in Mainz by the local garrison and surrounding troops (Legio XXII Primigenia). Although Postumus was able to quickly capture Mainz and kill Laelianus, he was unable to control his own troops and they turned on him and killed him, since they were dissatisfied with him for not allowing them to sack the city of Mainz (Aur. Vict. 33.8; Eutrop. 9.9.1).

Following the death of Postumus, his empire lost control of Britain and Spain, and the shrunken remains of the Gallic Empire were inherited by Marius.

Postumus AR Antoninianus. IMP C POSTVMVS P F AVG, radiate, draped & cuirassed bust right / MONETA AVG, Moneta standing left with scales & cornucopiae. RIC 75. RSC 199.ecoli

312. VictorinusMarcus Piav(v)onius Victorinus was emperor of the successionist Gallic Empire from 268 to 270 or 271, following the brief reign of Marius.

Victorinus, born to a family of great wealth, was a soldier under Postumus, the first of the so-called Gallic emperors. Victorinus held the title of tribunus praetorianorum in 266/267, and was co-consul with Postumus in 267 or 268. Following the death of Marius, Victorinus was declared emperor by the troops located at Augusta Treverorum (Trier, Germany), and he was recognized by the provinces of Gaul and Britain, but not Spain, which reunited with the Roman Empire.

During his reign, Victorinus successfully prevented the city of Augustodunum Haeduorum (Autun, France) from rejoining the Roman Empire. The city was besieged for seven months, before it was stormed and plundered.

Victorinus was murdered in 270 or early 271 by Attitianus, one of his officers, whose wife Victorinus had supposedly seduced. Victorinus' mother, Victoria (or Vitruvia), continued to hold power after the death of Victorinus and she arranged for his deification and, after considerable payment to the troops, the appointment of Tetricus I as his successor.

Victorinus is listed among the Thirty Tyrants in the Historia Augusta. The (dubius) Historia Augusta equally has a short description of Victorinus the Younger, allegedly the son of Victorinus that was appointed Emperor by his family the day his father was murdered, and would have been killed immediately afterwards by the troops.

Victorinus antoninianus. IMP C VICTORINVS P F AVG, radiate, draped & cuirassed bust right / PAX AVG, Pax standing left. RIC 118, Cohen 79. ecoli

4 MaravedisSpanish Empire - King Philip IV

1621 - 1665 AD

Obverse: PHILIPPVS IIII DG

Reverse: HISPANIARVM REX 1622Pericles J2

6 MaravedisSpanish Empire

VI Maravedis

1641 - 1642 AD

Mintmark - C (Caneda)Pericles J2

602a. Valentinian IIIIn the early years of his reign, Valentinian was overshadowed by his mother. After his marriage in 437, moreover, much of the real authority lay in the hands of the Patrician and Master of Soldiers Aetius. Nor does Valentinian seem to have had much of an aptitude for rule. He is described as spoiled, pleasure-loving, and influenced by sorcerers and astrologers. He divided his time primarily between Rome and Ravenna. Like his mother, Valentinian was devoted to religion. He contributed to churches of St. Laurence in both Rome and Ravenna. He also oversaw the accumulation of ecclesiastical authority in the hands of the bishop of Rome as he granted ever greater authority and prestige to pope Leo the Great (440-461) in particular.

Valentinian's reign saw the continued dissolution of the western empire. By 439, nearly all of North Africa was effectively lost to the Vandals; Valentinian did attempt to neutralize that threat by betrothing his sister Placidia to the Vandal prince Huneric. In Spain, the Suevi controlled the northwest, and much of Gaul was to all intents and purposes controlled by groups of Visigoths, Burgundians, Franks, and Alans. In 454, Valentinian murdered his supreme general Aetius, presumably in an attempt to rule in his own right. But in the next year, he himself was murdered by two members of his bodyguard, ex-partisans of Aetius.

Although Valentinian was ineffectual as a ruler, his legitimate status and connection to the old ruling dynasty provided a last vestige of unity for the increasingly fragmented Roman empire. After his death, the decay of the west accelerated. The different regions of the west went their own way, and the last several western emperors, the so-called "Shadow" or "Puppet" Emperors, not only were usually overshadowed by one barbarian general or other, but also were limited primarily to Italy.ecoli

707a, Galba, 3 April 68 - 15 January 69 A.D.Galba AE As, 68-69 AD; cf. SRC 727, 729ff; 27.85mm, 12g; Rome: Obverse: GALBA IMP CAESAR…, Laureate head right; Reverse: S P Q R OB CIV SER in oak wreath; gF+/F Ex. Ancient Imports.

De Imperatoribus Romanis: An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Rulers and their Families

Galba (68-69 A.D.)

John Donahue
College of William and Mary

Introduction
The evidence for the principate of Galba is unsatisfactory. The sources either concentrate on the personality of the man, thereby failing to offer a balanced account of his policies and a firm chronological base for his actions; or, they focus on the final two weeks of his life at the expense of the earlier part of his reign. As a result, a detailed account of his principate is difficult to write. Even so, Galba is noteworthy because he was neither related to nor adopted by his predecessor Nero. Thus, his accession marked the end of the nearly century-long control of the Principate by the Julio-Claudians. Additionally, Galba's declaration as emperor by his troops abroad set a precedent for the further political upheavals of 68-69. Although these events worked to Galba's favor initially, they soon came back to haunt him, ending his tumultuous rule after only seven months.

Early Life and Rise to Power
Born 24 December 3 BC in Tarracina, a town on the Appian Way, 65 miles south of Rome, Servius Galba was the son of C. Sulpicius Galba and Mummia Achaica. Galba's connection with the noble house of the Servii gave him great prestige and assured his acceptance among the highest levels of Julio-Claudian society. Adopted in his youth by Livia, the mother of the emperor Tiberius, he is said to have owed much of his early advancement to her. Upon her death, Livia made Galba her chief legatee, bequeathing him some 50 million sesterces. Tiberius, Livia's heir, reduced the amount, however, and then never paid it. Galba's marriage proved to be a further source of disappointment, as he outlived both his wife Lepida and their two sons. Nothing else is known of Galba's immediate family, other than that he remained a widower for the rest of his life.

Although the details of Galba's early political career are incomplete, the surviving record is one of an ambitious Roman making his way in the Emperor's service. Suetonius records that as praetor Galba put on a new kind of exhibition for the people - elephants walking on a rope. Later, he served as governor of the province of Aquitania, followed by a six-month term as consul at the beginning of 33. Ironically, as consul he was succeeded by Salvius Otho, whose own son would succeed Galba as emperor. Over the years three more governorships followed - Upper Germany (date unknown), North Africa (45) and Hispania Tarraconensis, the largest of Spain's three provinces (61). He was selected as a proconsul of Africa by the emperor Claudius himself instead of by the usual method of drawing lots. During his two-year tenure in the province he successfully restored internal order and quelled a revolt by the barbarians. As an imperial legate he was a governor in Spain for eight years under Nero, even though he was already in his early sixties when he assumed his duties. The appointment showed that Galba was still considered efficient and loyal. In all of these posts Galba generally displayed an enthusiasm for old-fashioned disciplina, a trait consistent with the traditional characterization of the man as a hard-bitten aristocrat of the old Republican type. Such service did not go unnoticed, as he was honored with triumphal insignia and three priesthoods during his career.

On the basis of his ancestry, family tradition and service to the state Galba was the most distinguished Roman alive (with the exception of the houses of the Julii and Claudii) at the time of Nero's demise in 68. The complex chain of events that would lead him to the Principate later that year began in March with the rebellion of Gaius Iulius Vindex, the governor of Gallia Lugdunensis. Vindex had begun to sound out provincial governors about support for a rebellion perhaps in late 67 or early 68. Galba did not respond but, because of his displeasure with Neronian misgovernment, neither did he inform the emperor of these treasonous solicitations. This, of course, left him dangerously exposed; moreover, he was already aware that Nero, anxious to remove anyone of distinguished birth and noble achievements, had ordered his death. Given these circumstances, Galba likely felt that he had no choice but to rebel.

In April, 68, while still in Spain, Galba "went public," positioning himself as a vir militaris, a military representative of the senate and people of Rome. For the moment, he refused the title of Emperor, but it is clear that the Principate was his goal. To this end, he organized a concilium of advisors in order to make it known that any decisions were not made by him alone but only after consultation with a group. The arrangement was meant to recall the Augustan Age relationship between the emperor and senate in Rome. Even more revealing of his imperial ambitions were legends like LIBERTAS RESTITUTA (Liberty Restored), ROM RENASC (Rome Reborn) and SALUS GENERIS HUMANI (Salvation of Mankind), preserved on his coinage from the period. Such evidence has brought into question the traditional assessment of Galba as nothing more than an ineffectual representative of a bygone antiquus rigor in favor of a more balanced portrait of a traditional constitutionalist eager to publicize the virtues of an Augustan-style Principate.
Events now began to move quickly. In May, 68 Lucius Clodius Macer, legate of the III legio Augusta in Africa, revolted from Nero and cut off the grain supply to Rome. Choosing not to recognize Galba, he called himself propraetor, issued his own coinage, and raised a new legion, the I Macriana liberatrix. Galba later had him executed. At the same time, 68, Lucius Verginius Rufus, legionary commander in Upper Germany, led a combined force of soldiers from Upper and Lower Germany in defeating Vindex at Vesontio in Gallia Lugdunensis. Verginius refused to accept a call to the emperorship by his own troops and by those from the Danube, however, thereby creating at Rome an opportunity for Galba's agents to win over Gaius Nymphidius Sabinus, the corrupt praetorian prefect since 65. Sabinus was able to turn the imperial guard against Nero on the promise that they would be rewarded financially by Galba upon his arrival. That was the end for Nero. Deposed by the senate and abandoned by his supporters, he committed suicide in June. At this point, encouraged to march on Rome by the praetorians and especially by Sabinus, who had his own designs on the throne, Galba hurriedly established broad-based political and financial support and assembled his own legion (subsequently known as the legio VII Gemina). As he departed from Spain, he abandoned the title of governor in favor of "Caesar," apparently in an attempt to lay claim to the entire inheritance of the Julio-Claudian house. Even so, he continued to proceed cautiously, and did not actually adopt the name of Caesar (and with it the emperorship) until sometime after he had left Spain.

The Principate of Galba
Meanwhile, Rome was anything but serene. An unusual force of soldiers, many of whom had been mustered by Nero to crush the attempt of Vindex, remained idle and restless. In addition, there was the matter concerning Nymphidius Sabinus. Intent on being the power behind the throne, Nymphidius had orchestrated a demand from the praetorians that Galba appoint him sole praetorian prefect for life. The senate capitulated to his pretensions and he began to have designs on the throne himself. In an attempt to rattle Galba, Nymphidius then sent messages of alarm to the emperor telling of unrest in both the city and abroad. When Galba ignored these reports, Nymphidius decided to launch a coup by presenting himself to the praetorians. The plan misfired, and the praetorians killed him when he appeared at their camp. Upon learning of the incident, Galba ordered the executions of Nymphidius' followers. To make matters worse, Galba's arrival was preceded by a confrontation with a boisterous band of soldiers who had been formed into a legion by Nero and were now demanding legionary standards and regular quarters. When they persisted, Galba's forces attacked, with the result that many of them were killed.
Thus it was amid carnage and fear that Galba arrived at the capital in October, 68, accompanied by Otho, the governor of Lusitania, who had joined the cause. Once Galba was within Rome, miscalculations and missteps seemed to multiply. First, he relied upon the advice of a corrupt circle of advisors, most notably: Titus Vinius, a general from Spain; Cornelius Laco, praetorian prefect; and his own freedman, Icelus. Second, he zealously attempted to recover some of Nero's more excessive expenditures by seizing the property of many citizens, a measure that seems to have gone too far and to have caused real hardship and resentment. Third, he created further ill-will by disbanding the imperial corps of German bodyguards, effectively abolishing a tradition that originated with Marius and had been endorsed by Augustus. Finally, he seriously alienated the military by refusing cash rewards for both the praetorians and for the soldiers in Upper Germany who had fought against Vindex.

This last act proved to be the beginning of the end for Galba. On 1 January 69 ("The Year of the Four Emperors"), the troops in Upper Germany refused to declare allegiance to him and instead followed the men stationed in Lower Germany in proclaiming their commander, Aulus Vitellius, as the new ruler. In response, Galba adopted Lucius Calpurnius Piso Frugi Licinianus to show that he was still in charge and that his successor would not be chosen for him. Piso, although an aristocrat, was a man completely without administrative or military experience. The choice meant little to the remote armies, the praetorians or the senate, and it especially angered Otho, who had hoped to succeed Galba. Otho quickly organized a conspiracy among the praetorians with the now-familiar promise of a material reward, and on 15 January 69 they declared him emperor and publicly killed Galba; Piso, dragged from hiding in the temple of Vesta, was also butchered.

Assessment
In sum, Galba had displayed talent and ambition during his lengthy career. He enjoyed distinguished ancestry, moved easily among the Julio-Claudian emperors (with the exception of Nero towards the end of his principate), and had been awarded the highest military and religious honors of ancient Rome. His qualifications for the principate cannot be questioned. Even so, history has been unkind to him. Tacitus characterized Galba as "weak and old," a man "equal to the imperial office, if he had never held it." Modern historians of the Roman world have been no less critical. To be sure, Galba's greatest mistake lay in his general handling of the military. His treatment of the army in Upper Germany was heedless, his policy towards the praetorians short sighted. Given the climate in 68-69, Galba was unrealistic in expecting disciplina without paying the promised rewards. He was also guilty of relying on poor advisors, who shielded him from reality and ultimately allowed Otho's conspiracy to succeed. Additionally, the excessive power of his henchmen brought the regime into disfavor and made Galba himself the principal target of the hatred that his aides had incited. Finally, the appointment of Piso, a young man in no way equal to the challenges placed before him, further underscored the emperor's isolation and lack of judgment. In the end, the instability of the post-Julio-Claudian political landscape offered challenges more formidable than a tired, septuagenarian aristocrat could hope to overcome. Ironically, his regime proved no more successful than the Neronian government he was so eager to replace. Another year of bloodshed would be necessary before the Principate could once again stand firm.

Copyright (C) 1999, John Donahue.
Published: De Imperatoribus Romanis: An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Rulers and their Families http://www.roman-emperors.org/startup.htm. Used by permission.

Edited by J. P. Fitzgerald, Jr.

Cleisthenes

710a, Vespasian, 1 July 69 - 24 June 79 A.D.Silver denarius, RIC II, 10, aVF, 3.5 g, 18mm, Rome mint, 69-71 AD; Obverse: IMP CAESA[R] VESPASIANV[S AV]G - Laureate head right; Reverse: COS ITER [T]R POT - Pax seated left holding branch and caduceus. Ex Imperial Coins.

De Imperatoribus Romanis:
An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Rulers and their Families

Titus Flavius Vespasianus (A.D. 69-79)

John Donahue
College of William and Mary

Introduction

Titus Flavius Vespasianus (b. A.D. 9, d. A.D. 79, emperor A.D. 69-79) restored peace and stability to an empire in disarray following the death of Nero in A.D. 68. In the process he established the Flavian dynasty as the legitimate successor to the Imperial throne. Although we lack many details about the events and chronology of his reign, Vespasian provided practical leadership and a return to stable government - accomplishments which, when combined with his other achievements, make his emperorship particularly notable within the history of the Principate.

Early Life and Career

Vespasian was born at Falacrina near Sabine Reate on 17 November, A.D. 9, the son of T. Flavius Sabinus, a successful tax collector and banker, and Vespasia Polla. Both parents were of equestrian status. Few details of his first fifteen years survive, yet it appears that his father and mother were often away from home on business for long periods. As a result, Vespasian's early education became the responsibility of his paternal grandmother, Tertulla. [[1]] In about A.D. 25 Vespasian assumed the toga virilis and later accepted the wearing of the latus clavus, and with it the senatorial path that his older brother, T. Flavius Sabinus, had already chosen. [[2]] Although many of the particulars are lacking, the posts typically occupied by one intent upon a senatorial career soon followed: a military tribunate in Thrace, perhaps for three or four years; a quaestorship in Crete-Cyrene; and the offices of aedile and praetor, successively, under the emperor Gaius. [[3]]

It was during this period that Vespasian married Flavia Domitilla. Daughter of a treasury clerk and former mistress of an African knight, Flavia lacked the social standing and family connections that the politically ambitious usually sought through marriage. In any case, the couple produced three children, a daughter, also named Flavia Domitilla, and two sons, the future emperors Titus and Domitian . Flavia did not live to witness her husband's emperorship and after her death Vespasian returned to his former mistress Caenis, who had been secretary to Antonia (daughter of Marc Antony and mother of Claudius). Caenis apparently exerted considerable influence over Vespasian, prompting Suetonius to assert that she remained his wife in all but name, even after he became emperor. [[4]]

Following the assassination of Gaius on 24 January, A.D. 41, Vespasian advanced rapidly, thanks in large part to the new princeps Claudius, whose favor the Flavians had wisely secured with that of Antonia, the mother of Germanicus, and of Claudius' freedmen, especially Narcissus. [[5]] The emperor soon dispatched Vespasian to Argentoratum (Strasbourg) as legatus legionis II Augustae, apparently to prepare the legion for the invasion of Britain. Vespasian first appeared at the battle of Medway in A.D. 43, and soon thereafter led his legion across the south of England, where he engaged the enemy thirty times in battle, subdued two tribes, and conquered the Isle of Wight. According to Suetonius, these operations were conducted partly under Claudius and partly under Vespasian's commander, Aulus Plautius. Vespasian's contributions, however, did not go unnoticed; he received the ornamenta triumphalia and two priesthoods from Claudius for his exploits in Britain. [[6]]

By the end of A.D. 51 Vespasian had reached the consulship, the pinnacle of a political career at Rome. For reasons that remain obscure he withdrew from political life at this point, only to return when chosen proconsul of Africa about A.D. 63-64. His subsequent administration of the province was marked by severity and parsimony, earning him a reputation for being scrupulous but unpopular. [[7]] Upon completion of his term, Vespasian returned to Rome where, as a senior senator, he became a man of influence in the emperor Nero's court. [[8]] Important enough to be included on Nero's tour of Greece in A.D. 66-67, Vespasian soon found himself in the vicinity of increasing political turbulence in the East. The situation would prove pivotal in advancing his career.

Judaea and the Accession to Power

In response to rioting in Caesarea and Jerusalem that had led to the slaughter in the latter city of Jewish leaders and Roman soldiers, Nero granted to Vespasian in A.D. 66 a special command in the East with the objective of settling the revolt in Judaea. By spring A.D. 67, with 60,000 legionaries, auxiliaries, and allies under his control, Vespasian set out to subdue Galilee and then to cut off Jerusalem. Success was quick and decisive. By October all of Galilee had been pacified and plans for the strategic encirclement of Jerusalem were soon formed. [[9]] Meanwhile, at the other end of the empire, the revolts of Gaius Iulius Vindex, governor of Gallia Lugdunensis, and Servius Sulpicius Galba , governor of Hispania Tarraconensis, had brought Nero's reign to the brink of collapse. The emperor committed suicide in June, A.D. 68, thereby ensuring chaos for the next eighteen months, as first Galba and then Marcus Salvius Otho and Aulus Vitellius acceded to power. Each lacked broad-based military and senatorial support; each would be violently deposed in turn. [[10]]

Still occupied with plans against Jerusalem, Vespasian swore allegiance to each emperor. Shortly after Vitellius assumed power in spring, A.D. 69, however, Vespasian met on the border of Judaea and Syria with Gaius Licinius Mucianus, governor of Syria, and after a series of private and public consultations, the two decided to revolt. [[11]] On July 1, at the urging of Tiberius Alexander, prefect of Egypt, the legions of Alexandria declared for Vespasian, as did the legions of Judaea two days later. By August all of Syria and the Danube legions had done likewise. Vespasian next dispatched Mucianus to Italy with 20,000 troops, while he set out from Syria to Alexandria in order to control grain shipments for the purpose of starving Italy into submission. [[12]] The siege of Jerusalem he placed in the hands of his son Titus.

Meanwhile, the Danubian legions, unwilling to wait for Mucianus' arrival, began their march against Vitellius ' forces. The latter army, suffering from a lack of discipline and training, and unaccustomed to the heat of Rome, was defeated at Cremona in late October. [[13]] By mid-December the Flavian forces had reached Carsulae, 95 kilometers north of Rome on the Flaminian Road, where the Vitellians, with no further hope of reinforcements, soon surrendered. At Rome, unable to persuade his followers to accept terms for his abdication, Vitellius was in peril. On the morning of December 20 the Flavian army entered Rome. By that afternoon, the emperor was dead. [[14]]

Tacitus records that by December 22, A.D. 69, Vespasian had been given all the honors and privileges usually granted to emperors. Even so, the issue remains unclear, owing largely to a surviving fragment of an enabling law, the lex de imperio Vespasiani, which conferred powers, privileges, and exemptions, most with Julio-Claudian precedents, on the new emperor. Whether the fragment represents a typical granting of imperial powers that has uniquely survived in Vespasian's case, or is an attempt to limit or expand such powers, remains difficult to know. In any case, the lex sanctioned all that Vespasian had done up to its passing and gave him authority to act as he saw fit on behalf of the Roman people. [[15]]

What does seem clear is that Vespasian felt the need to legitimize his new reign with vigor. He zealously publicized the number of divine omens that predicted his accession and at every opportunity he accumulated multiple consulships and imperial salutations. He also actively promoted the principle of dynastic succession, insisting that the emperorship would fall to his son. The initiative was fulfilled when Titus succeeded his father in A.D. 79.[[16]]

Emperorship

Upon his arrival in Rome in late summer, A.D. 70, Vespasian faced the daunting task of restoring a city and a government ravaged by the recent civil wars. Although many particulars are missing, a portrait nevertheles emerges of a ruler conscientiously committed to the methodical renewal of both city and empire. Concerning Rome itself, the emperor encouraged rebuilding on vacated lots, restored the Capitol (burned in A.D. 69), and also began work on several new buildings: a temple to the deified Claudius on the Caelian Hill, a project designed to identify Vespasian as a legitimate heir to the Julio-Claudians, while distancing himself from Nero ; a temple of Peace near the Forum; and the magnificent Colosseum (Flavian Amphitheatre), located on the site of the lake of Nero 's Golden House. [[17]]

Claiming that he needed forty thousand million sesterces for these projects and for others aimed at putting the state on more secure footing, Vespasian is said to have revoked various imperial immunities, manipulated the supply of certain commodities to inflate their price, and increased provincial taxation. [[18]] The measures are consistent with his characterization in the sources as both obdurate and avaricious. There were occasional political problems as well: Helvidius Priscus, an advocate of senatorial independence and a critic of the Flavian regime from the start, was exiled after A.D. 75 and later executed; Marcellus Eprius and A. Alienus Caecina were condemned by Titus for conspiracy, the former committing suicide, the latter executed in A.D. 79.
As Suetonius claims, however, in financial matters Vespasian always put revenues to the best possible advantage, regardless of their source. Tacitus, too, offers a generally favorable assessment, citing Vespasian as the first man to improve after becoming emperor. [[19]] Thus do we find the princeps offering subventions to senators not possessing the property qualifications of their rank, restoring many cities throughout the empire, and granting state salaries for the first time to teachers of Latin and Greek rhetoric. To enhance Roman economic and social life even further, he encouraged theatrical productions by building a new stage for the Theatre of Marcellus, and he also put on lavish state dinners to assist the food trades. [[20]]

In other matters the emperor displayed similar concern. He restored the depleted ranks of the senatorial and equestrian orders with eligible Italian and provincial candidates and reduced the backlog of pending court cases at Rome. Vespasian also re-established discipline in the army, while punishing or dismissing large numbers of Vitellius ' men. [[21]]
Beyond Rome, the emperor increased the number of legions in the East and continued the process of imperial expansion by the annexation of northern England, the pacification of Wales, and by advances into Scotland and southwest Germany between the Rhine and the Danube. Vespasian also conferred rights on communities abroad, especially in Spain, where the granting of Latin rights to all native communities contributed to the rapid Romanization of that province during the Imperial period. [[22]]

Death and Assessment

In contrast to his immediate imperial predecessors, Vespasian died peacefully - at Aquae Cutiliae near his birthplace in Sabine country on 23 June, A.D. 79, after contracting a brief illness. The occasion is said to have inspired his deathbed quip: "Oh my, I must be turning into a god!" [[23]] In fact, public deification did follow his death, as did his internment in the Mausoleum of Augustus alongside the Julio-Claudians.

A man of strict military discipline and simple tastes, Vespasian proved to be a conscientious and generally tolerant administrator. More importantly, following the upheavals of A.D. 68-69, his reign was welcome for its general tranquility and restoration of peace. In Vespasian Rome found a leader who made no great breaks with tradition, yet his ability ro rebuild the empire and especially his willingness to expand the composition of the governing class helped to establish a positive working model for the "good emperors" of the second century.

Bibliography

Since the scholarship on Vespasian is more comprehensive than can be treated here, the works listed below are main accounts or bear directly upon issues discussed in the entry above. A comprehensive modern anglophone study of this emperor is yet to be produced.

Atti congresso internazionale di studi Flaviani, 2 vols. Rieti, 1983.

Atti congresso internazionale di studi Vespasianei, 2 vols. Rieti, 1981.

Bosworth, A.B. "Vespasian and the Provinces: Some Problems of the Early 70s A.D." Athenaeum 51 (1973): 49-78.

Brunt, P. A. "Lex de imperio Vespasiani." JRS (67) 1977: 95-116.

D'Espèrey, S. Franchet. "Vespasien, Titus et la littérature." ANRW II.32.5: 3048-3086.

Dudley, D. and Webster, G. The Roman Conquest of Britain. London, 1965.

Gonzalez, J. "The Lex Irnitana: A New Copy of the Flavian Municipal Law." JRS 76 (1986): 147-243.

Grant, M. The Roman Emperors: A Biographical Guide to the Rulers of Rome, 31 B.C. - A.D. 476. New York, 1985.

Homo, L. Vespasien, l'Empereur du bons sens (69-79 ap. J.-C.). Paris, 1949.

Levi, M.A. "I Flavi." ANRW II.2: 177-207.

McCrum, M. and Woodhead, A. G. Select Documents of the Principates of the Flavian Emperors Including the Year of the Revolution. Cambridge, 1966.

Nicols, John. Vespasian and the Partes Flavianae. Wiesbaden, 1978.

Scarre, C. Chronicle of the Roman Emperors. The Reign-by-Reign Record of the Rulers of Imperial Rome. London, 1995.

Suddington, D. B. The Development of the Roman Auxiliary Forces from Caesar to Vespasian, 49 B.C. - A.D. 79. Harare: U. of Zimbabwe, 1982.

Syme, R. Tacitus. Oxford, 1958.

Wardel, David. "Vespasian, Helvidius Priscus and the Restoration of the Capitol." Historia 45 (1996): 208-222.

Wellesley, K. The Long Year: A.D. 69. Bristol, 1989, 2nd ed.

Notes

[[1]] Suet. Vesp. 2.1. Suetonius remains the major source but see also Tac. Hist. 2-5; Cass. Dio 65; Joseph. BJ 3-4.

[[2]] Suetonius (Vesp. 2.1) claims that Vespasian did not accept the latus clavus, the broad striped toga worn by one aspiring to a senatorial career, immediately. The delay, however, was perhaps no more than three years. See J. Nicols, Vespasian and the Partes Flavianae (Wiesbaden, 1978), 2.

[[3]] Military tribunate and quaestorship: Suet. Vesp. 2.3; aedileship: ibid., 5.3, in which Gaius, furious that Vespasian had not kept the streets clean, as was his duty, ordered some soldiers to load him with filth;,they complied by stuffing his toga with as much as it could hold. See also Dio 59.12.2-3; praetorship: Suet. Vesp. 2.3, in which Vespasian is depicted as one of Gaius' leading adulators, an account consistent with Tacitus' portrayal (Hist 1.50.4; 2.5.1) of his early career. For a more complete discussion of these posts and attendant problems of dating, see Nicols, Vespasian, 2-7.

[[4]] Marriage and Caenis: Suet. Vesp. 3; Cass. Dio 65.14.

[[5]] Nicols, Vespasian, 12-39.

[[6]] Suet. Vesp. 4.1 For additional details on Vespasian's exploits in Britain, see D. Dudley and G. Webster, The Roman Conquest of Britain (London, 1965), 55 ff., 98.

[[7]] Concerning Vespasian's years between his consulship and proconsulship, see Suet. Vesp. 4.2 and Nicols, Vespasian, 9. On his unpopularity in Africa, see Suet. Vesp. 4.3, an account of a riot at Hadrumentum, where he was once pelted with turnips. In recording that Africa supported Vitellius in A.D. 69, Tacitus too suggests popular dissatisfaction with Vespasian's proconsulship. See Hist. 2.97.2.

[[8]] This despite the fact that the sources record two rebukes of Vespasian, one for extorting money from a young man seeking career advancement (Suet. Vesp. 4.3), the other for either leaving the room or dozing off during one of the emperor's recitals (Suet. Vesp. 4.4 and 14, which places the transgression in Greece; Tac. (Ann. 16.5.3), who makes Rome and the Quinquennial Games of A.D. 65 the setting; A. Braithwaite, C. Suetoni Tranquilli Divus Vespasianus, Oxford, 1927, 30, who argues for both Greece and Rome).

[[9]] Subjugation of Galilee: Joseph. BJ 3.65-4.106; siege of Jerusalem: ibid., 4.366-376, 414.

[[10]] Revolt of Vindex: Suet. Nero 40; Tac. Ann. 14.4; revolt of Galba: Suet. Galba 10; Plut. Galba, 4-5; suicide of Nero: Suet. Nero 49; Cass. Dio 63.29.2. For the most complete account of the period between Nero's death and the accession of Vespasian, see K. Wellesley, The Long Year: A.D. 69, 2nd. ed. (Bristol, 1989).

[[11]] Tac. Hist. 2.76.

[[12]] Troops in support of Vespasian: Suet. Vit. 15; Mucianus and his forces: Tac. Hist. 2.83; Vespasian and grain shipments: Joseph. BJ 4.605 ff.; see also Tac. Hist. 3.48, on Vespasian's possible plan to shut off grain shipments to Italy from Carthage as well.

[[13]] On Vitellius' army and its lack of discipline, see Tac. Hist. 2.93-94; illness of army: ibid., 2.99.1; Cremona: ibid., 3.32-33.

[[14]] On Vitellius' last days, see Tac. Hist. 3.68-81. On the complicated issue of Vitellius' death date, see L. Holzapfel, "Römische Kaiserdaten," Klio 13 (1913): 301.

[[15]] Honors, etc. Tac. Hist. 4.3. For more on the lex de imperio Vespasiani, see P. A. Brunt, "Lex de imperio Vespasiani," JRS (67) 1977: 95-116.

[[16]] Omens: Suet. Vesp. 5; consulships and honors: ibid., 8; succession of sons: ibid., 25.

[[17]] On Vespasian's restoration of Rome, see Suet. Vesp. 9; Cass. Dio 65.10; D. Wardel, "Vespasian, Helvidius Priscus and the Restoration of the Capitol," Historia 45 (1996): 208-222.

[[18]] Suet. Vesp. 16.

[[19]] Ibid.; Tac. Hist. 1.50.

[[20]] Suet. Vesp. 17-19.

[[21]] Ibid., 8-10.

[[22]] On Vespasian's exploits in Britain, see esp. Tac., Agricola, eds. R. M. Ogilvie and I. A. Richmond (1967), and W. S. Hanson, Agricola and the Conquest of the North (1987); on the granting of Latin rights in Spain, see, e.g., J. Gonzalez, "The Lex Irnitana: a New Copy of the Flavian Municipal Law." JRS 76 (1986): 147-243.

[[23]] For this witticism and other anecdotes concerning Vespasian's sense of humor, see Suet. Vesp. 23.

Copyright (C) 1998, John Donahue. Published on De Imperatoribus Romanis, an Online Encyplopedia of Roman Rulers and their Families.
http://www.roman-emperors.org/vespasia.htm
Used by permission.

Edited by J. P. Fitzgerald, Jr.

Cleisthenes

Ae As Emerita Augusta (Merida). SPAINTiberius, AE27 As of Emerita, Spain, AD 14-37.
TI CAESAR AVG PONT MAX IMP, laureate head right / AETERNITATI AVGVSTAE CAE, tetrastyle temple.
RPC 48; Burgos 1062.
27 mm / 13.37 gr.Antonivs Protti

AE Semis. Castulo, Hispania. SpainCASTULO, SPAIN, AE SEMIS
CN VOC S T F, BARE, MALE HEAD RIGHT / BULL RIGHT OVER CN AND CRESCENT. BURGOS (2008), 728.Antonivs Protti

Aelia Flaccilla Aelia Flaccilla AE2. Struck 383 AD, Constantinople mint.

AEL FLACCILLA AVG, mantled bust right in elaborate headdress & necklace / SALVS REIPVBLICAE, Victory seated right, inscribing a christogram on shield resting on small column. T in right field, mintmark CON Epsilon. RIC 81 var (RIC lists T in left field only).

FLACILLA (Aelia), the first wife of Theodosius the Great; born in Spain, daughter of Antonius, prefect of Gaul, she was celebrated for her piety, and for her benevolence to the poor. Arcadius and Honorius were her sons by the above named emperor, who married her before his accession to the imperial throne.

She died in Thrace, A. D. 388. Her brass coins are of the lowest degree of rarity, her gold and silver most rare.

A half aureus of this empress's, on which she is styled AEL FLACILLA AVG, bears her head crowned with a diadem enriched with precious stones. - SALVS REIPVBLICAE is the legend, and a victory inscribing on a shield the monogram of Christ, is the type of the reverse.2 comments

Aequitas COS IIIDenarius
Obv: IMP CAES NERVA TRAIAN AVG GERM
Laur. r.
Rev: COS III
Aequitas standing l., holding scales and cornucopiae.
2.6 g
Sold on eBay Spain, 30 November 2014, for €15.60.klausklage

Alfonso XI, (1312 - 1350 A.D.)Spain, Leon
Billon Cornado
O: +ALFON S REX, crowned bust left
R: CASTELE LEGION•, castle with three towers; L and star flanking tower, L below.
León mint.
19mm
.81g
ME 1182; Burgos 289.1 commentsMat

Augusto AE as, Lapida-Celsa. SPAINAugustus, AE28 (as) of Lepida-Celsa, Spain, (g) AVGVSTVS DIVI F Laureate head right / L BAGGIO D V ICEL MVNFESTO Bull standing right, II VIR before. RPC 273 _ 3860Antonivs Protti

AugustusAugustus
16 mm 2.98 gm
O: Bare head left
R: Patera, aspergillum, jug and lituus
Provincial of Spain, Colonia PatriciaKoffy

AUGUSTUS & PTOLEMY OF NUMIDIA AE semisAVGVSTVS DIVI F
bare head of Augustus right

C LAETILIVS APALVS II V Q, REX PTOL (Ptolemy, King) within diadem

Carthago Nova, Spain, under sole 'duovir quinqunennales' C Laetilius Apalus.

18.5mm, 5.3g.
RPC 172.

Ex-Incitatus

Ptolemy of Numidia was the son of King Juba II of Numidia and Cleopatra Selene II. He was also the grandson of Mark Antony and Cleopatra VII on his mohter's side. He was named in honor of the memory of Cleopatra VII, the birthplace of his mother and the birthplace of her relatives. In choosing her son's name, Cleopatra Selene II created a distinct Greek-Egyptian tone and emphasized her role as the monarch who would continue the Ptolemaic dynasty. She by-passed the ancestral names of her husband. By naming her son Ptolemy instead of a Berber ancestral name, she offers an example rare in ancient history, especially in the case of a son who is the primary male heir, of reaching into the mother's family instead of the father's for a name. This emphasized the idea that his mother was the heiress of the Ptolemies and the leader of a Ptolemaic government in exile.

Through his parents he received Roman citizenship and was actually educated in Rome. Amazingly he grew up in the house of his maternal aunt, and Antony's daughter Antonia Minor, the youngest daughter of Mark Antony and the youngest niece of Augustus. Antonia was also a half-sister of Ptolemy's late mother, also a daughter of Mark Antony. Antonia Minor's mother was Octavia Minor, Mark Antony's fourth wife and the second sister of Octavian (later Augustus). Ptolemy lived in Rome until the age of 21, when he returned to the court of his aging father in Mauretania.

Ptolemy was a co-ruler with his father Juba II until Juba's death and was the last semi-autonomous ruler of Africa. On a visit to Rome in 40 AD he was seen by the Emperor Caligula in an amphitheather wearing a spectacular purpal cloak. A jealous Caligula had him murdered for his fashionable purple cloak.

Sold to Calgary Coin Feb 20172 commentsJay GT4

Augustus (27 BC - 14 AD), AE25, Julia Traducta, SpainRoman Provincial, Augustus AE25 Julia Traducta, Spain, (27 BC - 14 AD), 9.7g, 25mm

Obverse: PERM CAES AVG, Bare head left.

Reverse: IVLIA TRAD, in a oak wreath.

Reference: RPC 108

Ex: Holding History Coins+photo
Gil-galad

Augustus (27 BC-AD 14). Spain, Corduba, Colonia Patricia. Æ As(25MM, 9.26G, 7H).
BARE HEAD L. R/ COLONIA/ PATRICIA WITHIN WREATH.
ACIP 3357; RPC I 129.Antonivs Protti

Augustus (27 BC-AD 14). Spain, Corduba. Æ As (25mm, 9.26g, 7h).
Bare head l. R/ COLONIA/ PATRICIA within wreath.
ACIP 3357; RPC I 129.Antonivs Protti

AUGUSTUS AE as. Turiaso, Tarraconensis, Spain, after 2 BC. MVN TVRIASO, oak wreath.AUGUSTUS AE as. Turiaso, Spain, after 2 BC. IMP AVGVSTVS P P, laureate head right. Reverse - MVN within oak wreath; TVRIASO below.
RPC I 405. 30mm, 13.9g _5700Antonivs Protti

Augustus AE25 of Julia Traducta in Spain Portrait & IVLIA TRAD Oak WreathAugustus Spain, Julia Traducta Mint 27BC-14 AD
Obverse: PERM CAES AVG Bare head of Augustus left
Reverse: IVLIA TRAD within oak wreath
References: RPC 108; SNG Copenhagen 459Antonivs Protti

Augustus Carteia Dolphin and RudderAugustus, Spain, Carteia, AE Quadrans, 27 BC - 14 AD, 4.8g, 17.29mm, Burg. 527, RPC.119, SNG Cop 441
OBV: IIII VIR above, DD below, rudder
REV: CARTEIA below dolphin swimming left with trident.
Semi autonomous issue from Spain

SCARCE
SRukke

Augustus Carteia Tyche and NeptuneAugustus, Carteia Spain, AE Semis, 27 BC - 14 AD, 21.36mm, 7.2g, RPC I 122, Villaronga 71, Burgos 662,
OBV: CARTEIA, Turreted bust of Tyche right
REV: D D, Neptune standing left, foot on rock, holding dolphin and trident

The Latin colony of Carteia was founded in 171 B.C. In 27 B.C., when Augustus had become emperor, Hispania Ulterior was divided into Baetica (modern Andalusia) and Lusitania (modern Portugal, Extremadura, and part of Castilla-León). Cantabria and Basque country were also added to Hispania Citerior.3 commentsSRukke

Augustus Denarius, RIC 126AUGUSTUS (27 BC-14 AD). AR Denarius.

Uncertain mint in Spain, possibly Colonia Patricia. 18-16 BC

Obv: Bare head right.
Rev: AVGVSTVS. Capricorn right, with globus attached to rudder between hooves; cornucopia above.
Weight: 3.73 g. Diameter: 19-20 mm.
RIC² 126. RSC 21; BMC 346; C. 21; BN 1273
Condition: Good very fine. Nice toning.1 commentsvindelicus

Augustus Gaius and Lucius TarracoAugustus, AE As, Tarraco Spain, 27 BC - 14 AD, 23.16mm, 5.5g, RPC 210, SNG Copenhagen 524
OBV: IMP CAES AVG TR POT MAX PP, Laureate head of Augustus right
REV: C L CAES CVT AVG F, Heads of Gaius right and Lucius left, Caesars
SRukke

Augustus, AE Semis, RPC I 130Augustus
27 B.C. – 14 A.D.

Coin: AE Semis

Obverse: PERM CAES - AVG, Bare headed bust facing to the left.
Reverse: COLO-NIA PATRICIA, Apex and Simpulum.

Weight: 5.04 g, Diameter: 20.6 x 21 x 2 mm, Die axis: 45°, Mint: Colonia Patricia (Corduba), Spain, struck between 18-2 B.C. Reference: RPC I 130Constantine IV

Augustus, AE Semis, RPC I 99Augustus
27 B.C. – 14 A.D.

Coin: AE Semis

Obverse: PERM CAES - AVG, Bare headed bust facing left.
Reverse: IVLIA TRAD, in two lines within a Civic Crown.

Weight: 9.27 g, Diameter: 23.2 x 22.4 x 2.9 mm, Die axis: 230°, Mint: Julia Traducta, Spain, struck between 12-10 B.C. Reference: RPC I 99

According to Strabo, between 33 - 25 BCE, the name "Iulia Traducta" ("transferred Iulia"), refered to the fact that part of the population had been moved from the city of Iulia Constantia Zilitanorum in North Africa.Constantine IV

Augustus, AE25, RPC I 129Augustus
27 B.C. – 14 A.D.

Coin: AE25

Obverse: PERM CAES - AVG, Bare headed bust facing to the left.
Reverse: COLONIA / PATRICIA, in two lines within an Oak Wreath.

Weight: 11.65 g, Diameter: 25.4 x 25.5 x 2.5 mm, Die axis: 300°, Mint: Colonia Patricia (Corduba), Spain, struck between 18-2 B.C. Reference: RPC I 129Constantine IV

Augustus, AE25, RPC I 129Augustus
27 B.C. – 14 A.D.

Coin: AE25

Obverse: PERM CAES - AVG, Bare headed bust facing to the left.
Reverse: COLONIA / PATRICIA, in two lines within an Oak Wreath.

Weight: 9.01 g, Diameter: 25 x 24.5 x 2.3 mm, Die axis: 100°, Mint: Colonia Patricia (Corduba), Spain, struck between 18-2 B.C. Reference: RPC I 129Constantine IV

Augustus, AE26, RPC I 32Augustus
27 B.C. – 14 A.D.

Coin: AE26

Obverse: DIVVS AVGVSTVS PA-TER, radiate bust facing left.
Reverse: COL - AVGVST - EMERITA, around the city of Emerita.

Weight: 8.87 g, Diameter: 26.3 x 26 x 2.6 mm, Die axis: 190°, Mint: Emerita, Spain, posthumous issue by Tiberius, 14-37 A.D. Reference: RPC I 32Constantine IV

Augustus, AE28 (as) Lepida-Celsa, Spain, (g) AVGVSTVS DIVI F Laureate head right / L BAGGIO D V ICEL MVNFESTO Bull standing right, II VIR before. RPC 273Antonivs Protti

Augustus, Carteia Spain, Tyche & NeptuneAugustus 27 B.C.E. - 14 C.E.
AE Semis, RPC I 122, Villaranoga 71
Obverse - CARTEIA, Turrited bust of Tyche right
Reverse - DD, Neptune standing left, holding dolphin and trident
21.2 mm., 4.6 g.NORMAN K

Augustus, Carteia Spain, Tyche & Neptune, 31 BCE-14 CEAugustus 27 B.C.E.- 14 C.E.
AE Semis, 21.3 mm., 4.5 g. RPC I 122, Villaranoga 71
Obverse - CARTEIA, Turrited bust of Tyche right
Reverse - DD, Neptune standing left, holding dolphin and tridentNORMAN K

Augustus, with Caius and Lucius.SPAIN, Julia Traducta. Augustus, with Caius and Lucius Caesars. 27 BC-AD 14.
Æ Dupondius (21.26g, Max Dia 30 mm).
Obverse : PERM.CAES AVG Bare head left
Reverse : Bare heads of Caius and Lucius Caesars, back to back IVL TRAD
RPC 107; SNG Copenhagen 458. G/F , nice patina.

From The Sam Mansourati Collection. Sam

Augustus. Kelse.Spain, Kelse-Celsa. Augustus. 27 BC-14 AD. AE Unit (10.98 gm, 28mm). Velilla de Ebro (Zaragoza) mint.
Obv.: IMP. CAESAR. DIVI. F. AVGVSTVS. COS. XII, laureate head right.
Rev.: CN. DOMIT. C. POMPEI. II. VIR. C. V I. CEL, bull standing right. Abh. 811. VF.Paul R3

Battle of Munda (45 BC)Julius Caesar AR Denarius. Military mint moving with Caesar in Spain, 46-45 BC.

Obv: Head of Venus to right, wearing stephane; Cupid behind shoulder
Rev: Trophy of Gallic arms between two seated captives: female seated left resting head in right hand, and bearded male seated right with hands tied behind back, looking left; CAESAR in exergue.

After the Battle of Thapsus, Caesar traced the Pompeian brothers to Hispania. On March 17, 45 BC, the two armies met at the Battle of Munda, which ended in the victory of Caesar. About 30,000 Pompeians were killed on the battlefield, including Titus Labienus, but Gnaeus managed to escape. He was later cornered during the Battle of Lauro, and killed.
The coin was issued by the military mint traveling with Caesar in Hispania, the reverse dipicted Caesar's recent conquest of Gaul.YuenTsin C

Belt Plates - 2nd century AD - Openwork filigreeRoman open-work, or opus interassile, style belt plaques.

The small plate on the left served as a hanger - a pouch or knife was attached to the loop.
The larger plate on the right was a standard decorative plate.

Both date to the mid-2nd to early 3rd century AD.

References:
Roman Military Equipment, 2nd edition, figure 88, #2-4 from Strageath on Hadrian's Wall.
Dura Europos report, volume 7, #87 which cites parallels from Richborough, Zugmantel, Saalburg and Drnholec Croatia.
Appels and Laycock, AA 14.55, 3rd century.
An exact parallel for the long, right hand plate, was found at Bashonal do Ibor in western Spain, Morillo and Aurrecoechea, The Roman Army in Hispania, page 173, #8. 1 commentsSC

Blanca (Reyes Católicos)1506 - 1566 AD

Obverse: FERNANDVS ET ELISABET
Crowned monogram of Ferdinand II of Aragon.

Reverse: REX ET REGINA CAST LEGION
Crowned monogram of Isabella I of Castile.

Mintmark: S (Sevilla)
Pericles J2

BRABANT - Under SpainBRABANT - Under Spain, Charles II (1665-1700) Cu Liard, 1690. KM #91.2.dpaul7

C. Annius Luscus, Crawford 366/1aC. Annius Luscus, gens Annia, and L. Fabius Hispaniensis
AR - denarius, 3.76g
mint in Northern Italy or Spain, 82-81 BC
obv. C.ANNI.T.F.T.N.PRO.COS.EX.S.[C.]
Bust of Anna Perenna(?), draped, wearing frontale, ear-rings and necklace, r.
caduceus behind, scales before, beneath T
rev. Victory, in long clothes, stg. in quadriga r., holding reigns in l. and long palmbranch in
r. hand
above Q
in ex. L.FABI.L.HIS[P]
Crawford 366/1a; Sydenham 748; Annia 2a; BMC Spain 1-12
nice VF

An imperatorial issue for the campaign against Sertorius in Spain. The questor Fabius, named on the reverse, later passed over to Sertorius and then perished with him.
For more information about Anna Perenna look at the thread 'Mythological interesting coins'Jochen

C. Cut in Antiquity: Halved AR Shekel (13 x 22mm, 4.10g), Punic Spain, Carthago Nova, 2nd Punic WarPhoto source: CNG [LINK]
Greek World (Hellenistic/Post-Classical N. Africa). Spain under Carthage, Carthago Nova AR Shekel (Halved, 13 x 22mm, 4.10g, 11h). Second Punic War issue, temp. Barcids, ca. 237-209 BCE.
Obv: Male head left (bare head of Melqart w/ features of Hannibal?); dotted border.
Rev: Horse standing right, palm tree in background; ground line, linear border.
Ref: MHC 131–65 (unlisted dies); ACIP 603.
Prov: Ex B. G. Collection, CNG EA 477 (23 Sep 2020), Lot 1 [LINK]; CNG 88 (14 Sep 2011), Lot 2 [LINK].

Notes: This coin was cut in antiquity with one strike from a narrow chisel to the obverse, then folded until the "halves" separated. Assuming uniform thickness, it represents about 61.5% of the original mass (~6.65g), leaving ~2.55g in the other "half." Coins "sectioned" in antiquity are often described as having been "cut for change," but cut coins are also found in hacksilver hoards that may not rely on currency standards at all. (Including hoards from Spain at this time; e.g., McCabe 2015 [LINK] & van Alfen et al. 2008 [LINK].)

Given the crisis in silver currency supply after Rome regained control of Spain, another interesting prospect is whether it might've been cut for "currency conversion" (i.e., from Punic Shekel to Attic Drachm or Roman Denarius, with the remaining "half" as a lightweight Victoriatus or Hemidrachm). That hypothesis is only speculation, and doesn't seem strongly supported by data from four similar specimens sold by CNG (c. 2011-3), probably part of a hoard (3.09g, 3.51g, 3.93g, and a 5.51g example prepared for sectioning into thirds). Just for fun, though, I've nicknamed this coin the "Hannibal Denarius" (the ID of the male head as Hannibal is highly controversial, to say the least, and debated for more than 50 years).1 commentsCurtis JJ

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